“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

~Maria Robinson

*****

It’s almost August! I know for most of you the carefree days of summer stretch on until after Labor Day, but around here the poor kids start school in a matter of a couple of weeks!

This got me thinking … have I done everything I wanted to do this summer?  Have I had all the fun I planned on having?

Inevitably the over thinker in me followed a rabbit trail…what about the year as a whole? How am I doing with my goals for 2010? What have I learned this year? What am I still hoping to do?

Do you know  that there are only 155 days left in 2010? Which means we’ve already lived 210 of the 365 days allotted… this year is on the down-hill race to the end.

The older I get the more determined I am to live my life with intention but also with direction.  Here’s what I mean…if I intend to go to Florida but head out of Georgia going North, I’m not going to get to my intended destination. (Andy Stanley has a great book that explains this beautifully: The Principle of the Path ) I can’t tell you how many goals I’ve intended to accomplish but ended up failing for lack of direction. For lack of being on the right path. (Most recently, I intended to fit into my clothes but baked my way straight through 2009. No matter how good my intentions were, with my 3 times a week baking, I was not going to stay the same size, I was going in the wrong direction!)

With my intention in mind, I find it necessary to check my path. Am I going the right direction this year, doing the next right thing to get to where I want to go? I’ve talked lots about my focus-word for the year...friendship.

But what I haven’t mentioned is that last January 1st I did a little time-travel.

I wrote a letter (in my journal) to myself of things I’d like to say on January 1, 2011.

I wanted to put to paper specific things, attitudes and goals I’d like to tackle in 2010. And in my letter, I wanted to thank God in advance for helping me accomplish my projects and surrender my crummy attitudes…as He sees fit of course.

So yesterday I looked back at that letter to see how I was doing.

I’m not going into detail but God has helped me with so many things already….although,  I’ve room for improvement. This is where that breath-of-fresh-air quote comes in…

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

I’m starting today to make certain, with God’s help, that the ending of 2010 will be a good one…

Anything that you wanted to do, quit or experience in 2010 that you’ve put on the back-burner? If it’s still important to you…it’s not too late.

xo

~Have a weekend full of intention and purpose my friends~

Soooo…

I thought I’d update you on my “JunkFood-fast”!

I posted about my issues with all things baked and sugary HERE. My plan was to come off of junk-food sugary treats for a month and then eat them just once a week. My goal was to fit back into my clothes and to get out of the habit of eating ice cream cones for lunch!

I’m into week seven. I’m only eating a small amount of sweets once a week these days and here’s what’s changed…

*My clothes fit! It took 5 weeks before I could tell a difference but finally, they all fit!

*I’m not craving sweets like I was…this is nothing short of Divine Intervention. Can I get an AMEN!

*Somehow, I’m able to eat less of everything! I wasn’t really trying for this, it just happened. I seem to be more satisfied. Again… miracle I tell ya.

*****

These things have saved me…At some point during the late morning I want to chew something sweet…frozen grapes have been meeting that need. Believe me, no one is more shocked and aghast about this than me! Grapes are after all a fruit and I’m not dipping them in milk chocolate! But the texture and the just-sweet-enough taste is perfect.

Five or six nights a week, The Husband makes us smoothies. Holy canolli the man can make a smoothie! The consistency is like a milkshake…Here’s his recipe for the 2 of us…~6-8 strawberries cut.

~2 bananas cut

~1  1/2 cups Dannon Lite & Fit Strawberry Yogurt

~3/4 cup skim milk

~ice…about 16 ounces. He’s wouldn’t commit to an amount here. He says use: just enough to get your consistency right. (Add some and then check consistency and add more if it’s not milkshake like!)

Blend away and enjoy!

This is our dinner so if you’ll be eating this for dessert you may want to use half…

*****

I don’t think I’ve ever gone this long without baking. I’m not pouring over my cookbooks either and I won’t let myself watch the cooking channel!

I’m not going to say I’ll be doing this forever but it’s really freed-up bunches of time that I’m using for our DIY project. When I do get back to baking, it will be MUCH less frequent and I’ll do lots of low calorie-healthy baking and save the high calorie-high fat scrumptious-ness for special occasions!

Because…I feel much ever so much better now that I can zip my pants!

xoxo

Ps…I have also cut out bread 6 days a week during this time. I still eat whole wheat wraps but no bread. Thanks to my daughter and SIL’s trainer Seku, for all this advice! For me, it worked!

So I’m wondering…what’s the one thing you eat lots of that would be near-impossible to give up?

The wall, trim, wainscoting, doors and cabinets are all painted and gorgeous! The refinished floors look great and somehow The Husband and I got all the furniture back into place without scratching them! I’m hoping to show you DIY Project before and afters really soon.  (Check HERE for past posts)

Only a few fun projects are left to be done…curtains, hanging pictures and a couple more furniture painting projects!

****

I did one of those fun projects on Saturday afternoon…

A Lamp Re-Do!

I bought this lamp at T J Max, it was on sale from $39.00 to $15.00! Obviously the color was too dark for my new color palette but I love the shape…

First, I spray-painted it this yummy soft green…

But the lamp-shade wasn’t right for the flava-flave in my house and when I tried to cover it with a different fabric, it was just too dark. I’m determined to get more light in the den!
So I bought a super cheap white lamp shade from The Pottery and covered it with a creamy fabric.

But first…

I covered another lamp shade a few weeks ago and took some shots for a tutorial. The burlap cover for this lamp was easier to see …

Here’s how…

This part is a bit tricky, it would be a good idea to make a pattern before cutting your fabric. I didn’t do this because I live on the edge

I rolled the lamp around the fabric and penciled an inch on either side of the edge of the lamp shade to make my cutting line.

This shade had a trim around the edges which I took off  before gluing on my burlap…

Then I glued on the burlap with a glue gun (high heat). First the seam down the back. Then turn the edges to the inside of the shade and glue…

Then I glued the trim back on top of the burlap. And now’s the time to hot glue matching ribbon or seam binding to the inside edges…

Now, back to the cream lamp shade…

When it was covered it was a bit boring, so I made a burlap ruffle!

I cut 2″ strips…

Sew down the middle of each strip with large stitches…

Carefully pull thread to gather and make a happy little ruffle!

Use a glue gun to adhere the ruffle around the edges…

This is a really easy re-do find a bargain lamp and have some fun!

So to recap…I went from this lamp which was cute enough…

To this lamp which goes with the new look I’m going for…

Oh and one more thing…today, July 26th, would have been my mom’s 70th birthday. She left this world almost 5 years ago and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss her profoundly.  Mom is the reason that I have a passion for living my legacy with intention. If you are blessed enough to still have your mom walking around this planet, maybe give her a call. I sure wish I could do something as simple as picking up the phone and calling my mom.

~Happy Birthday Mom~

I’ll be linking to Metamorphosis Monday and Get Your Craft On!

Happy Birthday to me!

I wish I could send every one of you a little box of cupcakes today so we could celebrate. Truth be told I’m not so much celebrating my birthday as I am that the bulk of my painting job is OVAH!!!

*****

I’m working on a couple of lampshades along with a few pieces of furniture waiting in line for a brightening,  but today  in honor of my forty-nine years on the planet, I’m taking off and playing!

The Husband is refinishing the second half of the downstairs floors this weekend, so the house is still in utter disarray. But the walls, trim, cabinets and paneling are painted! Woot!

Have I mentioned how over-the-moon I am about Behr Paint and Primer? Yes, I know I have. But let me say one more time…

I COULD NOT have done this project without that miracle paint!

We’ve spent under $250.00 on Behr Ultra Paint and Primer (We have some left to start the upstairs. Shhhh, don’t mention this to The Husband yet.)

What on earth could  make such GINORMOUS changes for under $250.00?

One of the biggest changes is the fireplace…

It’s creamy~dreamy…

I also love the once dark, kinda dreary stair rail, now it’s clean and happy…

I’m tickled with the progress!

Hoping to show you finished pictures really soon…but first, the rest of the floors have to be done!

*****

In case you were wondering what I’ll be doing today…

~Have a happy weekend my friends~

xo

I’m still in pretty deep with my ginormous DIY project…

But I wanted serenity today. And if I show you very much of this project and you’re prone to nervousness, you’ll have a breakdown.

On Monday after getting up around 3:00am I  looked at my surroundings and seriously contemplated sitting down and having a hysterical cry. But there was nowhere to sit, every piece of furniture in the den was taken with pictures, lamps, books, oh and 4 dogs. The chaos in my outside world had insidiously seeped into me. But honestly, there’s no turning back at this point so I breathed deep, grabbed my new best friend (The Paintbrush) and focused on doing the next right thing.  Painting my fireplace.

While I was slathering paint on the thirsty brick I wondered…is there a secret to having serenity in the midst of chaos?

I’ve lived through a lot of chaos. Big things like my little brother’s battle with cancer and losing my mother threw my life into chaos for such a long time. Grief does that. More recently, the unplanned pregnancy of my unmarried daughter, Emma, turned my world upside down. On and on my mind thumbed through circumstance after circumstance that threw my life out of serenity.

As I thought about it I realized that not all chaos is huge and heavy.  Sometimes really good and exciting events have thrown my world into chaos. There were a few weddings and a job change or two for The Husband. There were remodels in days gone by that took us out of normality for weeks but in the end were bliss. (Remind me to tell you about the time I mentioned to The Husband how fun it’d be if “this” wall in the den were torn down only to come home from a shopping trip later that SAME day to find the wall gone…)

During some of these times I’ve maintained a core of serenity, but more times than not, I’ve lost it.

Wish I had better coping skills…

Kneeling there in front of my fireplace thinking about these things and methodically brushing on creamy paint, something shifted.

I realized I felt something akin to peace. Something like serenity. Maybe I was doing the answer to my question…is there a secret to having serenity in the midst of chaos?

Maybe the secret is, do the next right thing.

Sometimes the next right thing may be taking some time to grieve. To cry. To remember. Other times the next right thing may be saying I love you or I forgive you.

But for today, once again, my next right thing involves The Paintbrush.

And look who came to visit me yesterday…sigh.

She brings  love and joy and giggles and smooches…

~No matter what’s going on, when Ellie’s around, all is right with the world~

Sending you love~

You know where to find me today…doing the next right thing…

Linking to Chatting at the Sky’s ~ Tuesday’s Unwrapped

I know you’re sick of hearing about this project but it’s hard for me to think of anything else right now. I mean, with the floor refinishing and all the painting here’s a peek into our downstairs…

Friday morning, just when I was about to start painting the den, I decided first to repair a little hole in the dinning room wall

Then I discovered I didn’t have anymore of the paint I used 6 years ago to paint the dinning room. So…I grabbed my paint and started repainting.

The Husband says this was all part of my evil plan. But he can’t prove it.

He started sanding the floors on Friday night and I started painting the foyer.

We worked all weekend and…

~Dinning room is painted, trim too!

~Kitchen and dinning room floors are done.

~Foyer is done.

~One wall in the den is done!

This week…

*I’m finishing the den painting, including painting my red brick fireplace…can’t wait to get to that!  And we’ve (The Husband) removed the crown moldings to change them just a bit…can’t wait to show you!

*This weekend…We’ll move all the furniture into the kitchen/dinning room and The Husband will refinish the floors in the rest of the downstairs!

By Tuesday July 27th  we should be able to move all the furniture back into place and get back to a relaxing summer!

Last night The Husband said: “I can’t wait to get back to work tomorrow so I can rest a little!”

Have an inspired Monday my friends…

xo

But, Behr Paint with Primer has come through for me again!

While painting my kitchen at 2 in the morning I started noticing the trim and the cabinets. We refinished our cabinets and kitchen trim about 10 years ago using a 3 step process that looked “antiqued”.

I loved it at the time, although it was a long and pain-in-the -rear project…primer-paint-paint-stain-topcoat…I swore on my life I’d NEVER repaint a cabinet again. EVER.

But…

Monday when I was painting and nose to nose with every square inch of that kitchen I was horrified with my trim and cabinets. The more I’ve cleaned them over the years, it seems some of the finish has worn off. They just look dirty.

I nearly had a heart attack,  how could I not have noticed this?

When The Husband came home and started bragging on me for my 16 hour work day, I gingerly broached the trim and cabinet subject, planning my words carefully so he wouldn’t go running out of the house, I started small…

“Honey, this trim is in really bad shape. Look ” (Pause and point).

“Do you think  maybe I should paint it before you start refinishing the floors? Don’t worry I’ll do…”

“Let’s do the cabinets too” he interrupted.

I’m either very convincing or he’d already noticed the ‘issue’.

Soooooo, I’ve been painting trim and kitchen cabinets!

I’m using a Behr color, Sandstone Cove and of course it’s the Ultra Paint and Primer.

I painted some of the lower cabinets in a custom color match I used when painting some of my furniture…(chair on the left…)

This project, which also includes a bathroom and 3 doors, has gone so fast! I’m finished and thrilled with the result.

I could not have done it without that darn Behr Paint with Primer though. I’m icing my hand, which is pretty swollen and wearing Thermacare heat wraps on my shoulder and hip and taking a prescription Naproxen 

(This is what happens when you’re pushing 50 and have arthritis and continue to do DIY projects!)

*****

We have moved all the furniture out of the kitchen and dinning room and today The Husband starts his project…refinishing the wood floors. (heaven help him)

But it hasn’t been all walls and trim…
I’ve painted some fun things too, like the little buffet table that started out like this…(which I like, but I wanted to lighten it a bit…)

I mixed some of my tealish paint with Behr Antique White to soften the tone. 

And I hit my my mirror and shutters with a bit of color. It started like this…

(Sorry about the lighting in this shot…I’m in a massive hurry!)
Okay…so this weekend The Husband will be refinishing the floor, I’m starting on the den, which is where this project started in the first place!

Can I get an AMEN for inspiration…sigh.

Happy Weekend Peeps…how about doing something relaxing for me!!!!

xoxo

I had pictures and a little story…

But I woke this morning with a heavy heart and my precious friend, Sara, (Gitzen Girl) on my mind.  She lost her dad very suddenly a few days ago. The wake is today.I’ve introduced you to Sara before, but in case you haven’t met her yet, Sara is a beautiful young woman who is home-bound due to a chronic disease called Spondylitis.

Sara won’t be able to attend her father’s wake.

I went to her website to leave a prayer…I was so taken back by what Sara posted today…

Out of her broken heart comes beauty. And profound truth.

Please take a moment to visit Sara, you will leave with a treasure.

And take a moment to say a prayer for her and her family today…

Love to you my friends.

~Gitzen Girl~

I thought for a moment that for the month of July, since I was taking a blogging-lite schedule, I would reeelax and read and write more than usual…

Then I started the project I’ve been playing with for months.

I’m lightening up my life…although I love Autumn colors and rich wood tones, I’m weary of living with them.

I wanted to lighten up everything. And I do mean everything.

I started smallish…(If you want to see these project with some detail, check the pull-down menu under: All Things Home DIY)

But I’m going for a big finish…

I’m painting my den including all the paneling and trim…

The wall color is called: Castle Path and the trim/panel color is Sandstone Cove…

The foyer and up the stairs and upstairs hall have to be done too…including the doors…yikes.

Oh, and remember when I REPAINTED my kitchen just the other day…

From Red…

To this..

well, I’ve been up since 1:30 this morning and it’s almost repainted AGAIN!

Can’t wait to show you how I’m reinvented our living space with a little fabric (I made some easy curtains) and some paint…(you know how I love Behr Paint with Primer!)

Soooo, if you need me, I’ll be painting…

xo

Anyhoo, I’m posting a fantastic recipe with summer yellow squash  and sweet Vidalia onions…”yellow Squash”  is  a big “google-search”  these days so I thought I’d pass along one of my favorite recipes!

First, simply chop the squash and sweet onions and cook them in a bit of butter, salt and fresh ground pepper.

Here’s the Recipe…

Squash-Vidalia Onion Casserole

3 1/2 lbs Yellow Squash chopped

6  med. Vidalia Onions chopped (or other sweet onion)

1/2 stick butter

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste (But I’ll tell you, I use a LOT of pepper)

1 can cream of chicken soup

3 cups sharp cheddar cheese

2 eggs beaten lightly

8 slices of bacon – cooked crispy and chopped fine

*Cook squash, onion, butter, salt and pepper until squash & onion are done.

*Drain squash and onion well…

*Combine remaining ing. and mix with squash and onion.

*Put in a 9×13 and bake at 350* for 30-40 minutes or until bubbly.

I’ll be linking ~ Foodie Friday!

~Happy weekend Friends…enjoy your moments~