One. The lonely number.

House Resolutions for 2009

2008 was a tough year, and um.........not much was done around this old bungalow.

Our list was short. Only 8. Just to complete 8 things in 2008. That was all. Which at the time I thought was realistic. I was wrong.

Again. WRONG. ( See I said it right here for the world to see.... I was wrong.)

This year my goal is only one thing.

One. 1. Uno. Un. Une. Unis. I. The loneliest number.

(Sing it outloud, I know you want to.)

And if I combine it with the 8 other things that did not get finished ....ahem......even started. That would be 9.

Nine things for 2009.


I know you are wondering.....questioning...
"What the ONE thing that she is placing on her list?"




Paint the area around the light switch in the front bedroom ( our bedroom) where the terrible electricians re-wired the switch and completely tore up the wall...after I had patched, sanded, primed, and painted two coats of paint on the wall. I will also say that they tore up the wall .....
cough.....two years ago next week. And I re-patched and re-sanded everything....probably two years ago in March.


So Folks....That is it the ONE thing that I have on my list.


And as far as the 8 other things..... The only 8 things that we did not get accomplished.

We did work on the yard. A Lot. And the yard does look much better, except in the front where the grass is dying because someone turns his truck around on the grass.

I did work on stripping paint off the mouldings and door casings. Which is a major pain. Don't let anyone let you think otherwise. IT IS A PAIN. You can work for hours and maybe even days on one 8' board and still not get down to the wood.

Anyway.....

The Kitchen..... I think I am glad we did not get further with the kitchen cabinets. After using the kitchen, I want to change some things around. Nothing big like a sink. Just one area about 3' long. (P.S. Chris doesn't know yet.)


That is it for 2009. Maybe just maybe we can work on some stuff from our 2008 list and complete the one thing for 2009.

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!


p.s.
Tonight it is off to some bar that Chris and his band has never played at before. I guess we will not be sleeping in the new year like normal and I will be washing the bar smell out of my hair at 3 a.m. I am excited. You can tell.

Grey Garden's Loot.

My winnings arrived from a Renovation Therapy contest/give away.

The super soft Grey Gardens T-shirt along with the Grey Gardens Key Chain came in the mail the day after Christmas.

Thanks Jean. I love 'em.

Thank You Santa.

This year I ask Santa for 3 things......
and I GOT 'EM !

The first thing on my list was a stainless steel table to serve as a small island in the kitchen. I put it together yesterday when I was suppose to be cleaning house. It can be used with out the wheels or with...... and the wheels have little locks on them. I love the wheels and once we ever have company over and make use of the deck. The table can be rolled right on outside to the deck as a serving prep area near the grill.

But..........The wheels make the table really high. The box said 39". My tape measure says 41".

The standard kitchen counter is 36". The good thing about the height is Chris and I are both tall, and as Chris said....."The turkey would be out of Puppy's reach." (If we ever cooked turkey and all.)

My plan is to leave the wheels on a while. See how I like it. The box came with stationary self-leveling feet as well, so if I decide I don't like it I can bring it back down to a normal height with the self leveling feet.

Next.....

The fancy-dancy micro-plane grater thingy is the other item I ask Santa for. I know it can be used for 10,000 things, however I wanted it for ZEST.

I LOVE ZEST.

Making zest with the ol' normal small grater is not very fun, actually it is a pain, a chore, a task that I always dread even if I do LOVE ZEST.

Oh.....Those cookies......

They are Ginger Snaps.

I made them with my Aunt's Recipe using the Brer Rabbit Black Strap Molasses. On Christmas Eve we baked cookies and candy and more cookies and more candy. Maybe since I do not have the recipe she will post it in the comments. (Hint...You may have to beg.)

I thought the photo of the Molasses came out very weird-ish on the new table. The bunny (Brer Rabbit) was so cute on the packaging, I had to share. (By the way....If you have never used black strap molasses...it is darker than normal molasses and has the look and feel of old used motor oil. )

Also notice in the reflection.....um.....someone needs to put up door casings. I have them sanded painted and primed stacked up in the middle bedroom. We do not have the plinth blocks. I need to carry my sample to Atlanta one day to find them and buy them. ( I need 8) The only place in town that has them orders them from the source I always used in Atlanta. So, I just need to drop by there one day and eliminate the middle man. Oh and all you Georgia house bloggers, If you have never been to Randall Brothers...you must go.

Are you wondering what I am going to make first with the zester?

Cranberry Orange Scones using Marilyn's recipe for making scones.

I will replace the chocolate chips with cranberries. I made these before and I cann't find the picture to share with you.

Speaking of Marilyn...Make sure you go vote for her blog. Simmer Til Done was nominated for an Apartment Therapy Homie Award for the Best Home Cooking Blog of 2008. I am not sure where the link to vote is....Maybe someone can help in the comments.

I will also use this pastry scraper thingie that Santa wrapped and placed under the tree when I make the scones.

Santa also dropped down the chimney a pretty red bracelet, some PJ's, a shirt, a sweater, a mini-vac, a hand made candle holder, and several other nice things that I seem to be forgetting at the moment. Thanks Santa.

Gathering Greens...

A couple of weeks ago, I went out on an searching for some evergreen foliage to fill the old containers on the front porch.

One good think about living in an old house is all the old plants that someone else planted.

A good thing about living in the south is the Magnolia.

One good thing about winter is Dead Kudzu.

The vibrant red holly berries are oh so "Christmas."

And the coppery seed pods from the Golden Rain Tree are just so interesting.

The evergreen above the seed pod has these rose type pine cones. I collected those too.

Fragrant Cedar. With the little blue berries.

Boxwood.

Some sticks that I painted red. ( Back in the Summer)

I found the gloves, my husband gave me. ( he is romantic like that)

I just had to show you the coppery underside of the magnolia leaf. LOVE IT.

And I stuck them all in the old containers by the front door.

Nothing fancy. Nothing stuffy.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas.

Look What I Won.....

Click HERE...

Now, I will have to rent the movie...

Check out more Renovation Therapy right here.

Yay! and Thanks Jean.

Lights. Camera. Action.

Feeling a bit of peer pressure from the neighbors I did put out some lights this year. ( We decided not to put up a tree. )

However being the person I am I just couldn't use white lights like everyone else, so I used green.

Not totally happy with the use of all green. It is just OK. I think I will shop some of the sales after Christmas for the multi color lights, maybe even the solar powered lights.

The day after I "lit" the trees, Chris pulled out the garden hose that I had neatly curled away at the side of the house. Somehow ...he got the garden hose tangled with the cord of the Christmas lights and pulled one of the little trees his mom gave us out of the ground. There is always drama around here. Thank goodness all survived; the tree, the lights, the hose and Chris.

A Quick Break.

A stress reducing cup of hot tea with honey and lemon is one of
my afternoon treats of choice.




I am still very busy working, and very thankful to be busy.
I just wanted you to know I miss you and will post soon.

Do you have an afternoon treat that you enjoy during a stressful day?

Busy Bee.

I've been a busy bee lately...Hopefully I will be able to post soon.
Thank you for checking in.

Sunday Walk: Places

Today... I will share with you some pics from our trip Thanksgiving week.



We crossed the Alabama River via the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge into Selma.




Downtown Selma is almost perfectly preserved.




Most all of the old signs, buildings and architectural details still intact.




If one were to take away the cars and modern traffic lights,these streets would look the same
as they did years and years ago.




Oh........how I love a Kress building...
Everyone that I have seen has such great detail.
This one screams DECO...

Does anyone know the deal with the details on Kress buildings? I could google it, I guess.

Well that's about all the shots that came out clear while zooming through this beautiful town on the way to my sisters.

Have a great Sunday.

They're Back........

Flying and Fluttering...



Squaking...




Sittin'....



And flying some more.... The Common Grackle is back in the area.

When they all take off you can hear the wind beneath their wings....
(sorry...for that)

Turkey, Pie, Fun, and Family

Lipstick was applied....

Barbie was styled in a vintage 70's sundress ....

Leaves were stomped...

Turkey giblets were removed.........

Hair was combed.......

Games were played......

and played......



The Turkey was sliced.....

The cranberry sauce too....



and lets not forget about the pies.....


We had a great whirlwind visit to Mississippi and back to visit my sister and her family.

Meaning......she did all the cooking..... Thanks Sis....we had a great time.