First World Problems.

A friend posted this on her blog...and it called me out!

Remember the last post about my smelly clothes??

ya, still a big blessing!

Convicting? Thought provoking?

A strangers tour.

If a stranger were to walk in to my home (without me running around franticly cleaning), I wonder what they would think. It would seem that I had a serious obsession with mustaches, Besides cups, napkins, and plates spread around the house, He might notice the stickers on the trash can, a closet door, on the seat of my pants, and in my puppy’s mouth!

 

He would also have to tread carefully to avoid getting stuck to our half finished floor. Of course he could ignore, there is a faint smell of paint (I don’t know where its coming from), and the sound of a running toilet and an lopsided fridge. Our “guest” bathroom looks like a boy’s bathroom…cause it is. And because I have not been in there for literally, 3 weeks, my out-of-sight-out-of-mind mentality has fully kicked in. Our puppy (I wont name names) is overweight and was put on “weight control” food and it worked well until he realized that he could steal food from his brother therefore, reducing the “weight control” effect. The half sewn curtains in the kitchen are shedding and being dragged to every room in the house.

 

The “hardy” plants that are un-killable have been killed by my superhuman power to forget they exist. Laundry continues to pile up as I sit at work looking around me to find the source of “that smell” only to realize it is my shirt. Apparently, that

superhuman power extends to the laundry – I let them sit in the dryer too long. What is too long anyways? One day, two days? Ya, it was probably a week.

 

On his was out he would have to squeeze through the door because of the volcano of hats, scarves, bags, etc piling on the hooks behind it. He might certainly giggle at our mismatched post that has recently been replaced on the back porch and wonder why there is a random rainbow rug in center. Fear not stranger, you are almost out. Just get in your car and make your way hastily down our pebbled road with no pebbles and marvel at our confused trees (some are in fall and some are in spring). Don’t stop too close to the gate. You can’t open it but I can but by now I am in the house totally embarrassed and forgotten to let you out so you will have to drive back or honk to get my attention. But whatever you do, DO NOT try to open the gate yourself…Neil takes it personally. 

 

This is what life looks like today. Lots of little stuff gone wrong but a great BIG blessing, nonetheless.

 

 

When Dreams Come True.

...Sometimes you don't know it!

I was sitting at FRIDAY'S, having a random lunch with my sister and we were talking about the dreams you have when you are "young". I know your dreams change as life happens but those childhood dreams happened once too and they are fun to look back on.

I ran across a list of "Things to do before I die" from high school..., I can't believe it was written 12 years ago!!! OMW (Oh, my word).

Anyways, here is some of the list:

1. Get into a good college.

2. Be a Doctor.

3. Own a craft store.

4. Marry a happy man.

5. Go on a hot air balloon.

6. Go to Hawaii.

7. Read a set of Encyclopedias.

8. Learn to play piano.

9. Coach basketball or softball.

10. Get published.

11. Play a sport in college.

There are lots more. Some of which I am embarassed of and some that I don't even know what they mean.Anyways, its nice to see that I have accomplished some but I also realized that sometimes we don't even know that we are living our "Dream".

The quirky thing about dreams is that we have to figure out if they are our dream or God's intent for us. Sometimes we have to come to realize that a dream is not what God wants for us and trust that he has something else in store. Dreams are often formed by what we think we should be doing, what our parents want for us, what society deems appropriate. But those dreams that God puts in our hearts, he has already paved the way for them to come into fruition. How exciting!

What I have learned about the USPS.

I visit the post office at least 5 times a week dropping of etsy orders. I often feel like I am single handedly keeping the post office open. The clerks know me well, and often save boxes for me :)
Here are a few things that I have learned about the USPS:

1. If you do not write your return address, it will take a day or two longer to get to its destination. Apparently, they have to pass it through an XRAY type machine to make sure there is nothing dangerous.

2. Parcel Post is cheapest. BUT, if your package were to get sent back to you for ANY reason, you would have to pay the full cost of shipping again to get it back.

3. Their PRIORITY boxes are FREEE!!! You can even order as many as you want online and they will be delivered to you! BUT...be careful how you order.

 I thought I was ordering 20 individual boxes and ended up with 20 boxes (each box has 25)!! They barely fit in my car. Anyone need boxes?

4. If you are one who grumbles at the cost of shipping (like I often do), consider this: to get a letter from Texas to Minnesota, it gets sorted 4 times, takes a ride on a truck, plane, and mail truck. An average of 20 employees will handle your letter and it will get there in 5-7 business days...all for $0.45.

Just thought I would share a few thoughts...happy mailing! 

Countertop makeover.

I few months ago, I posted about our powder room makeover here.

Since that time, I have decided that it is my favorite room in the house - even if it is the smallest :)

Now that it is MY main bathroom, I realized how unrealistic it is to have white counters. 

You see, I had pained the counter white but unlike my painted kitchen counters, this one was not holding up as well. I know it has to do with the fact that I did not paint as many layers of polyurethane on this one. 

This is what it was looking like. It was very hard to clean, and was starting to chip.

I decided to try covering it with an adhesive self liner that cost $5.99 from Lowe's.
First, I used newspaper to make a template.

 I traced the sink and cut out the hole. Then I traced the template onto the back of the vinyl.

 The hardest part was removing the backing and placing it on evenly. 

This is what it looks like now.

The liner was a faux marble. 

I actually like the way it came out but now the IVORY sink is too obvious!! 

No worries...I have a plan for that too!

In case you are wondering...yes, we though about buying a premade counter/sink combo but we under estimated the awkwardness of this house. The size of the counter would require a "special" order which started at $550 for not-so-good looking options. Who knows, maybe one day :) Its just not a priority right now.