New Window Treatments

Here's the before (kinda)...

I liked the center fabric screen BUT I was TIRED of the cheap reddish/pinkish curtains on the sides.....

Have you seen those VINYL window coverings? They are stickers, in various designs...well I ALWAYS wanted to get those in a 'frosty' look to cover the windows w/. It provides privacy while STILL allowing the light to shine in.

I REALLY NEED the light to be able to shine in, especially in the winter...I LOVE bright rooms.
Well, to cover all the window panes would cost something else.....

SO my frugal self went to work w/ an idea & followed-through today.

Not as detailed since the light was shining IN the window...looks like a sillouhette...

I covered the winders (lol) w/ 'frosty' tissue paper. The tissue on the side windows has tiny white dots, on white. All the center is just plain white.
It makes the window bare & plain but CLEAN looking. It will look really nice come Christmas when I have my lights & garland around the window.

NO need for curtains since there is full privacy.
I LOVE it.

(btw: the side windows open & are open in the picture, which is why you can see out.)

Recovering...

Whew! What a busy weekend, right? I assumed the first 2 parties were @ the SAME time. They were NOT. lol The first one started @ 11am...we showed up a bit after 1pm! Yikes.

Then we arrived to the 2nd party around 4pm. THEN we skipped the last birthday party to go straight to the Bridal Shower/roast.

Oh my word! We had so much fun...ROFLOL evening. Saw & visited w/ old friends. We were chosen to play a real live version of The NewlyWed game! TMI! Our 'host' played it quite well...including original questions involving the word: WHOOPIE! Talk about BLUSHING! But we ALL laughed SO hard, many of us could not hold back tears.

We almost won...but missed the bonus question. lol

Good times! Good times! :-)

Over-booked & Under-written.

I have 4 scheduled parties today & one football game for ds! And I haven't hardly been blogging. oh me, oh my!

I have a bunch in my head...but alas, sigh...there's only so much room in there.

How do days end up like this? A million & 1 things all in 1 day? I committed myself to 2 seperate events when I was invited...then a couple more last minute invites were added, then toss in this new football season that we were informed about literally days before!

It's too much for any person, much less a tired, pg mom to handle.

But we do it, right? Cause it's what we do.

I hope, @ least, there is good food @ these parties today. ;-)

OH! & did I mention all todays parties are of the gift giving occasion? I have ONE gift ready. (ok, almost ready) ONE! So I either add in a shopping trip among all of this...or hope that we were really invited cause they wanted US there & not just our presents.....

I'm actually too tired to really care either way @ this point. Is that so horrible?

cool weather = tea & baking!

What a perfect combination right?

It certainly FEELS like fall when it's like this, almost chilly, I must say. I don't want to jinx myself but I think I might be on the UPswing. lol

I got out my flour, shortening, measuring cups, had the ktbunch go scour the tree for any 'left-overs' & voila'! Apple Pie!

Last year I bought this giant cookie cutter type thing that creates a pie top filled w/ apple cut outs. I finally used it. I didn't use white flour & that was a mistake, the crust was a bit dry, no matter what I did but oh well. So it doesn't look that pretty but I'm sure (I hope) it will be tasty just the same right?

I'm planning, hoping, to make a chicken pie for dindin as well.
My back hurts w/ even a very little amount of standing so I am not too motivated to go back to the kitchen.

Can't we just have Apple Pie for dinner?
I mean it is ALL made from scratch....doesn't that make it extra healthy or something? :-)

And I enjoyed a nice cup of my Ethiopian tea. I will be so sad when I run out....
What better way to spend a chilly day, right? :-)

Apple for Teacher

Recently,(can't remember what day?) our friend & neighbor, surprised us w/ an Apple pie. It's their annual tradition to bake apple pies for the beginning of the school year.

Can you imagine what a pleasant surprise it was to hear a knock on the door, open & there's a warm, fresh from the oven pie being handed to you?

MMm...mmm...mmm.. delish!

Yah, it didn't last very long. :-)

It's that time of year again....

I'm not referring to school...it's pretty much emotional trigger time!

Aug 30, 2 years ago, my mom was given her diagnosis, which was a death sentence. The following two months were ---well, they aren't anything I can really describe. It was really as if she left me, left all of us, that day....it was only a few more days of her being fully 'there' & herself.

Physically she was here about 2 mos longer, but SHE was gone even before that.

Then toss in the anniversary of 9/11 which caused the entire country to go into a state of shock, depression, grief & emotional chaos.

And last year.......Sept 7, 2007---MY personal nightmare began....again. I never imagined a year after my mother's death, I'd be fighting another crazy battle of seemingly epic emotional proportions. kwim?

@ least w/ my mom, I knew God had prepared me for it, before hand. He told me something would be 'happening' & he'd be w/ me. I knew he was. I knew he was w/ me during the 'nightmare' of last year too...but it was different. I wasn't so prepared. I wasn't anything.

So each day is filled w/ various memories that spring up unexpectedly & I am here trying to hold onto something solid.

The hyper-emotionalism of pg does NOT help.

Sometimes the triggers catch me so off guard...but the mind & body remember, even if it is hidden deep back--it's still there.

I was hit w/ a bout of extreme tiredness this past weekend. Kinda just crept up on me. It wasn't until yesterday or so I realized what it was...the anniversary of my mother's diagnosis.

I remember everyone not really understanding while *I* immediately got online & began researching. *I* knew it was fatal--but I felt no one else seemed to understand that or didn't want to know. I needed to know--what were we up against, what were we fighting. I needed to know the details & the truth, however harsh it was.

And I remember my mom calling me from the hospital asking me to look up on line the life expectency of a person diagnosed w/ Pancreatic Cancer. I said ok but inside I thought NO WAY! I CAN'T tell her!!! But maybe I should have?

Then w/ Dh--there was no truth. I was spiraling uncontrollably in a sea of lies & confrontations that brought no relief. I had no idea what I knew, felt or even who I was anymore since everything I believed was nothing like the reality of those months or what had come to light from the previous 2 years.

I do have a lot to be thankful for right now. I know that.

Thankfulness isn't always the cure though...
But I'm trying.