Looks like NEW

I finished my antique table! 

Recently, while watching the show Color Splash on the HGTV channel, I got the idea to paint an antique piece of furniture a bright color. It makes your antique hand-me-downs instantly NEW!
Of course you don't have to paint them bright colors, any coat of new paint will do the trick, but bright colors are HAPPY!

So, I guess you could say, I have successfully taken on a new hobby.

I saw this on another blog and thought, 'FUN!'

I confess:

•       I am in love with Dreyer's Loaded Butterfinger ice cream.... IN LOVE!
•        I have a huge potty mouth when driving.
•        I drink WAY more Diet Coke than I do water. Seriously.
•        I pretty much only drink water when I am at work.
•        I adore working with sick babies. The parents....not so much.
•        This past summer I picked up the horrible habit of ...picking my nose. YIKES! I know, but I hate booger scabs.
•       I have totally gone overboard on Christmas presents for Jeff. I can't help it! I don't know what it is about this time of year, but it makes me want to buy EVERYTHING! Plus he is super easy to shop for...and I like dressing him.
•     When I am at stop lights I check FB on my iPhone.... Addict? Maybe.
•       I thinking shopping for clothes should count as a work out.
•       When I was dating, Harry Potter was my go-to make-out movie....

I think that will do for now....don't want to confess everything at once. ;-)

Christmas Time!

So, I got a little excited and put the tree up several days before Thanksgiving. 

IT FELT GREAT! 

I really think that next year I will get it up even earlier so we can enjoy it for most of November.

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!

It is by far my favorite time of year!

Finding Gratitude

Sometimes it feels like nothing goes right. Whenever this happens in my life, which seems to be pretty often this past year, my mom always reminds me to look for the little things to be grateful for. 

Several years ago when I was teaching RS in the singles ward, the 1st counselors wife made a comment in class about how she keeps a gratitude journal. She said that every day she writes 5 things she is grateful for.

I decided to do the same. Every night I wrote in my journal I would add a gratitude list to the bottom. 

Surprisingly,  I was always able to come up with 5 things to be grateful for. 

Here are some things I am grateful for right now:

Having a job.... that I LOVE!

Being married to my best friend and the most PATIENT person ever!

Having a GREAT family!

 

Breakfast at Mimi's

Dt. Coke 

 

Friends

Halloween Kumla

So, over Halloween weekend my dad and I decided to make the infamous Kumla. 

This is a delightful Norwegian dish that is basically a salty potato dumpling. It is served with salt pork, ham, bacon, melted butter, etc. All the good stuff!

It is mmm mmmm good!

An ultimate comfort food....assuming you don't suffer from kidney problems or high blood pressure...

We have had this several times on our visits to Norway and and after this last visit we swore we would learn to make it ourselves. So, out came the trusty Norwegian cookbook. 

We decided to stuff our Kumla with ham and serve it with salt pork on the side. 

A major SUCCESS!

How fair is a garden amid the trials and passions of existence

~ Benjamin Disraeli

I finally got the rest of my spring bulbs planted. It took me 2 hrs and I loved every minute of it! I have found that gardening sooths my soul.

I planted some of these:

and these...

and these...

and these...

and some of these...



and of course some of these...

I can't wait for spring!!!

Colorful Life

I LOVE COLOR!!!!!

I have found that the more bright colors there are around me the happier I feel....

not really too surprising. 

So, I have decided to add more color to my life.

Our living room and kitchen already have 

fuchsia, olive green, and teal...I just need more of it!

Here is my inspiration board....

I also super duper LOVE this look...

So, my first step toward more color is to do this

to my pedestal accent table...

  

but in this color....

Then I am going to take some old chairs I have

that I need to refinish as extra 

chairs for my dining room and

do something like this....

 But in a color scheme like this...

Or this...

So I know the olive green and floral chairs 

would be much more colorful, BUT

that dark espresso and robin egg damask

is just plain sexy!  

What say you?