Archives for September 2011

Still Pinning

7 September 2011 by

Whenever there’s some big new interweb fad, it’s tough to tell if my initial fascination is going to last. Because, I mean, Google Plus? Not so much. I don’t understand it.

But Pinterest? YES MA’AM.

In fact, I think Pinterest and I may be in this thing for the long haul.

Here are a few of my recent favorites:

Source: etsy.com via Sophie on Pinterest

Source: howjoyful.com via Sophie on Pinterest



Are y’all still pinning, too?

Filed Under: Rambling

An Oversized Tea Cozy Might Also Work

6 September 2011 by

I’ve mentioned before that my mama is the queen of form over function. She likes for everything on display in her house to be aesthetically pleasing, which is precisely why she keeps all the bed pillows in a closet and not on the beds.

It’s also why she is constantly looking for new and inventive ways to hide Daddy’s computer. What with all those unseemly cords, you understand.

So when D and I bought the new-to-us elliptical motion machine last week, I have to confess that the part of me that shares my mama’s decorative gene pool desperately wanted to figure out a way to make everything pretty, to figure out how to cleverly disguise the six foot-long black steel contraption that is now taking up residence in our home. I even thought about putting the elliptical in another bedroom, but since we tend to have a good bit of company, it seemed silly to tear apart one of the extra bedrooms when there was plenty of room in ours.

After a couple of days of considering all of the possibilities, I made a final decision. The best place for the elliptical really is in a corner of the master bedroom. It would only require moving one little piece of furniture, so for the most part it would be a super-easy transition. It was the right thing to do.

However.

Once we got everything moved, I walked in our room and felt just the slightest sense of hesitation. Because, well, DADGUM. The elliptical is just so, you know, big. And imposing. And not made of wood. And not capable of displaying family photographs or stacks of favorite books.

(sidenote: That big thing on the wall to the right is the previous owners’ headboard for their bed frame. We’ve thought about removing it, but it’s so securely attached that the whole wall would come down with it. And that is why I try to pretend like it’s a decorative feature and not an annoyance, though sometimes it definitely feels more like that last thing.)

After we adjusted the angle of the elliptical a little bit and scooted it as far back into the corner as we could, I realized that I was just going to have to make my peace with it. It’s not the most attractive accent piece in our room, but it’s hopefully going to help me to feel better.

So as I stood there and stared at it and vowed that I wouldn’t let it rob me of my decorative mojo, D apparently picked up on the fact that I was hesistant. He knows how much I like for a room to have a good “flow,” and he knows this because he would’ve stationed some sort of recliner with a cooler as well as a massage feature in the dead-center of our living room a long time ago if he didn’t have to take my love for “flow” into account. And so, considering the fact that we’d just moved a 200-pound piece of machinery into the corner of our bedroom, he was able to recognize that I was feeling a little unsettled.

And that is when he grabbed a throw from a nearby chair, grinned, and said, “Here. I’ll fix it just like your mama would.”

God bless him. It made me so happy.

And just so you know: I didn’t leave it that way. I like to think that I’m growing as a person.

But you’d better believe that I reserve the right to construct some sort of elaborate six-sided decorative screen in order to conceal all those handlebars and and pedals and wheels.

I think I’ll call Mama and see if she wants to start drawing up the plans.

Filed Under: Decorating, Family Fun

Monday Night

5 September 2011 by

This morning I woke up and (Rachel Zoe-ism alert) felt like a truck had LITERALLY run over me. At some point in the night the plague settled into my head and my chest, so I’ve spent most of the day either blowing my nose or trying to cough up a lung. I’ve also spent a considerable amount of time watching clips from old Mississippi State football games on the YouTube, but that was mainly to distract me from reaching for some sort of anvil in order to alleviate the blinding sinus pain and pressure. Some people like to watch chick flicks when they’re sick; I, on the other hand, prefer a sassy pick-six or a particularly powerful quarterback sack.

As I have often mentioned, I am a delicate flower.

Mama and Daddy drove over yesterday so they could spend Labor Day with us, and their plan was to leave this afternoon and drive home. The weather has been really nasty all day, though – something like six and a half inches of rain in the last 24 hours – and the flash floods and downed trees dictated that they spend one more night with us instead of trying to navigate the less-than-ideal driving conditions. Fortunately we still have power at our house, but it is pitch black dark all around us. There are lots of people without electricity in our neck of the woods.

It’s been strange to sit here and listen to today’s seemingly endless rain, mainly because I know that the folks in Texas would give just about anything to have had even a fraction of it. Off and on I’ve found myself praying, “Lord, send this rain west – just send it west” – because we’ve had such an over-abundance of it and Texas has such a desperate need for it. But the rain just keeps pouring here, sitting on top of ground that’s far too soaked to absorb anything else, and the fires keep burning in Texas, blazing a trail across land that, at this point, is basically acre upon acre of kindling.

So tonight, as the rain continues to beat against the trees, I’m reminded to pray for the people in Texas. I’d love it if you’d join me. Because even though we can’t send the rain to Texas, we know the One who can.

Have a good Tuesday, everybody.

Filed Under: Faith, Rambling

It Has Been A While

3 September 2011 by

I hardly ever post on Saturdays, but considering that we have had a day with absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to be (though I did make a quick trip to the Steinmarts since I had a coupon burning a hole in my pocket), I thought I’d check in here.

So. Let the checking in commence, I reckon.

In all honesty, the last 8 or 9 days have been sort of a WHITE HOT MESS in terms of some junk that I’ve been walking and wading through with people I care about a whole bunch, and while I think everything (Martha-speak alert) is going to be fine! just fine! it’s all going to be perfectly fine!, that doesn’t change the fact that it’s made for a pretty tiring week-and-some-change around these parts. A few nights ago I met some friends for supper, and as much as I was trying to be a gamer in terms of contributing to the conversation, there were several points during dinner when I nearly dozed off. My friends were hilarious, mind you, but there was something about the combination of the dimly-lit booth and being able to sit still for an extended period of time that left me a wee bit drowsy.

And that’s pretty much been the norm around here lately: plow through the day, try to stay awake during meals, fall asleep during a TV show, crawl in the bed, wake up at 5:30 the next morning – and repeat. And repeat. And repeat.

Oh, it has been a refreshing time.

Last weekend I told D that since I’m pretty locked in to several different obligations, this isn’t really one of those times when I can just decide to cut back on a couple of things in the interest of feeling more sane and rested. So, since I can’t necessarily do less, I have to figure out how to work smarter. I feel fortunate because I love everything that I’m doing / working on, but I’m not much good to my people if I’m so worn out from it all that I’m walking around in a daze half the time. And that is precisely why we now have a new addition to our family.

Yes. You’re seeing correctly. That would be a (used) elliptical motion machine. We bought it from one of our neighbors earlier this week, and I’m hoping that it’ll help Mama here have a little more energy and as a result be significantly less likely to fall asleep in the middle of TV shows and/or conversations. It’s HUGE, so today we’re going to try to figure out the best place to put it.

And by “best” what I really mean is “least conspicuous.” BECAUSE IT IS SO VERY GIGANTIC, MY WORD.

I have to say, though, that over the last day or so things have slowly been feeling a little more normal. We watched the Bulldogs play Thursday night, and I loved every single second (for the record, I made Southwestern Salad and a rotel dip with white cheese – both were tasty). Last night D and I went to see this guy in concert, and it was A DELIGHT. We had such a good time. Right now I’m watching the Ole Miss / BYU game, getting ready to fry up some chicken and looking forward to the LSU / Oregon game tonight. This morning on Twitter I mentioned that I don’t know how Les Miles is going to eat grass since he’ll be coaching tonight on artificial turf, but I’ll tell you what: I’m excited about the possibilities.

Anyway, enough about me. How are y’all? How’s your team doing this weekend? Do you have any fun Labor Day plans? Have any exciting naps on the horizon? Any wide stretches of time where you can hang out in your pajamas and spend quality time with your people and hopefully laugh a whole bunch?

A girl has to prioritize, you know.

Filed Under: Rambling
« Previous Page