This and That

Almost finished unpacking from the move.  Things are unfolding more slowly at this house, because I really am having to be careful about what I keep and creative about where I store it.  I still have boxes to go through on the carport, and shelves to hang inside.  I still need to buy new dishes, because, much to my sincere delight, my old ones were broken in the move.  I also still need to hem and iron my new bedroom drapes,  and purchase a couple of more panels for the living room window.  There are just many things that still need to happen for me to feel settled here, and I think I’m okay with that, as long as I don’t lose too much momentum.

I’m enjoying having a pretty and comfortable bedroom.  It’s cozy to snuggle in my private little oasis and read before going to sleep, and I love waking to the sunlight which streams into the large window and door which lead out onto the deck and into the backyard full of greening trees. I’m glad I finally did this for myself.  Here’s one angle:



I purchased my tickets to New Orleans last week.  Shellie and I are really looking forward to our trip at the end of May.  We can’t wait to talk to the locals, hear some good music, eat fabulous food and have a few drinks in the Big Easy.  We both look forward to photographing the architecture and enjoying the history of this old city. We are staying in the French Quarter for most of the trip and then making a quick trip into Lafayette and the surrounding areas to see Cajun Country, and my family as well.  We’ll be staying at a  cute little cottage with a screened in back porch looking out onto the Bayou Teche.  My brother has promised me a crawfish boil, and I am so looking forward to that.  I’m also looking forward to paddling a kayak in the Atchafalaya Basin, and hopefully getting some shots of cypress knees and alligators, Spanish moss and egrets.  What a great change of scene that will be!

At the end of this month, I’ll be taking a smaller trip with my kids, during their Spring Break from school.  Like last year, we will go and stay at Kahneeta Hot Springs Resort in Central Oregon.  My kids like it because they can swim all afternoon in warm water with water slides and sunshine.  I like it because I get to wake up to beautiful sunrises in the high desert, and get to take wonderful  hikes in the mornings before relaxing at in the natural hot spring water in the afternoon and evening.  On the final day, we will get up and head out to Smith Rock, which is one of my favorite places in Oregon.  Early Spring is a wonderful time to be there, before it gets overly crowded, and too warm.  I love hiking there.  Beautiful place with stunning vistas and jagged red rocks around which a gorgeous river winds.  I go back again and again in the Springtime.  Can’t wait to head out with my new camera this year!  Here’s a phone camera pic from a trip I made alone in late May/early June of 2009:





There have been all sorts of things on my mind since I last wrote, but they can’t all be tackled here and now.  I’m just happy to say I’m working out some kinks in my life and staying on track toward some important goals for myself and my family.  I’m grateful to be in touch with old friends and to have the understanding and love of so many who touch my life right here and now, too.  Even with the daily challenges, life remains so rich.

Busy!

I’ve started to write many times in the past couple of weeks since the glorious Super Bowl, but there has been so much going on that when I sit down to write, other things take my attention away, or I just don’t have the energy.  One day I literally slept the day away after having oral surgery to have a dental implant placed towards the back of my upper jaw. (surprisingly painless procedure for me!)

The primary reason I get too tired to write is I’ve been watching the Olympics.  Normally I can’t watch hours of television, but the Olympics are special.  I love them, and stay up far too late enjoying the thrill of all the various competitions.  It’s been particularly sweet this year, because Stella loves sports and is just as riveted as I am.  I remember being her age and dreaming about what it would be like to be an Olympian, and it’s fun to see her wheels turning the same way.  Her eyes lit up when I told her she could indeed compete at that level and that she just had to make it more than a dream, but also her goal and start working toward it.  She’s just the kind of person who will do it, too.  She’s now thinking about being on the Olympic Women’s Soccer team in 2020.  Just watch and see!

Besides creating a groove in my sofa while I watch the Olympic Games, I’ve been planning to move.  I have a new place here in the neighborhood, just down the street and around the corner from where I am now.  It’s a bit smaller in terms of storage space, so I am really needing to pare down and get rid of some things we don’t use.  I don’t know why, but this move is harder for me to get motivated for than some past moves.  The amount to be done feels overwhelming.  I just don’t feel like doing it. 
The good thing is that this is a “month to month” rental agreement I’m moving into, so that gives me the flexibility to buy should I find the right place for the right price here in our neighborhood.  Then I will make THE move and stay put for awhile.  It sure would be nice not to be at the mercy of people who decide to sell the place I’m renting from them.

The new place has some positives going for it.  What I lose in storage space, I gain in yard.  A FENCED yard.  I can actually let Molly be outside when I’m at work, which means, she will lose less hair in my house.  I joke that I can make a new dog out of her hair on a weekly basis – now the birds can use it in their nest construction. There is a back yard and a side yard, both fully fenced, and separated by a fence and a gate, so I can keep her in the back where she will be far less likely to scare passersby with her ferocious bark.  She is a medium sized black lab, but she sounds like a very large German Shepherd.  She’s a sweetheart, but I know she’ll simply have too much fun “talking” to people from the side yard, which goes out all the way to the street.

What I’m most excited about at the new house has less to do with the house and more to do with me finally going out and buying myself some special bedroom furniture to create a space designed for me to rest and relax in a place with good ambiance.  I’ve for too long been sleeping on an uncomfortable old mattress and box springs on the floor and haven’t created a special space for myself in my bedroom.  Well, I have now!  I went out and got a pretty bed frame from IKEA yesterday.  It’s the “Lillesande” black iron bed frame.  It’s old-fashioned looking, but isn’t overly ornate.  I love the simple, clean lines, and it looks fabulous with the antique dresser I found at a little shop in Oregon City.  Now that I’m writing this, I know I will have to post pictures soon.  The room looks so cute!  I got some bedside tables and really pretty little lamps from IKEA.  I will finally be able to read comfortably in a room that feels good and where the kids aren’t allowed for the most part.

My biggest challenge with making this bedroom look good is the one wall which the owner calls her “blackberry jam” wall, because it is the color of – you guessed it – blackberry jam.  That’s not a color I’ve ever decorated with, so I set out with a plan to find something that would complement that wall, and maybe dilute the intensity of it, too.  I decided that the only color I can imagine going with that shade of purple is green –  Mardi Gras colors! I’ve combined those two accent colors with white and off-white and it really looks good.  Sounds crazy, but I think I’ve put something together which really works.  I found a really nice “Spring” green and white duvet with sort of a tulip graphical pattern to it.  It’s hard to explain, actually, but it looks great, especially when I add a big yellow-green throw pillow and “blackberry jam” colored sheets.  I plan on finding some smaller  beaded pillows with jam purple in them to throw on there, too. 
There is a door to the back deck in my bedroom, and it’s basically a large window.  Another matching window, but not a door, is next to it, so together they look like French doors.  For privacy I’ll need window treatments, and I’ve found some cool drapes and shears at IKEA to match my green and purple theme.  Also – and I love this – the black curtain rod I found is ornamented with a fleur de lis on each end!  I can’t wait to hang the curtains and see how it all looks with the drapes.  Also, I found a couple of iron fleur de lis coat hooks at the little store where I found the antique dresser.  They are about  5-6 inches high, are very weathered looking, and they look great staggered on the wall next to my closet.  I think they will be a great place to hang my bathrobe or maybe a belt or two.   It’s a far flashier color scheme than I’ve ever used, but so far the colors and all the little touches look great!  I’m not super-girly, but I’m finding it’s fun to make a pretty space for myself. 

Today is the day I really dig in and pack stuff up to bring over there.  Because I have to pare down, I’m only bringing essentials over.  The rest will go to Goodwill and the dump.  I’ve got a girlfriend coming over to help me pack.  (She insisted – says she’s good at it!)  Later Scott will help me haul stuff.  It’s only a short distance away, so I can use my own car for a lot of this.  Surprising how much you can fit inside and on top of a Subaru Forester!  I felt like I was part of the Clampett family yesterday coming back from the antique store and then IKEA.  :)  In any case whatever’s too big will get moved by a rented truck and some friends’ strong backs next weekend.

Well, I’d better get on it.  Daylight’s burning.