Friday, October 4, 2013

a whole mish-mosh of stuff on a gloomy friday


 After a ton of sunny, warm days, the past couple of days have been overcast
and gloomy with some sprinkles of rain. I wish we'd get a good thunderstorm.
There's nothing like steady rain, the booms of thunder, and occasional flashes
 of lightning to make you feel safe and cozy in your home while the world is 
storming outside your walls. Good reading or movie-watching weather.

The leaves are falling like crazy now and the color change is showing its
beauty. This is the brush area right outside my front door.


I love watching the color change every fall of my neighbor's maple tree. 
You can tell from this photo how hazy and humid it is out there today.
The temps are still in the 70's, but the humidity level is at 85%! We 
actually had to turn the A/C back on last night so we could sleep. 


Despite the gloomy weather, today was the perfect day for me to stay at
home and nest anyway, as I've been out and about every day this week.
I got the house cleaned, caught up on reading some blogs, swept the leaves
off the porch and sidewalk, brushed the cats, and no surprise here ~
did some tweaking. I found this fall picture at a thrift shop a few weeks
ago and just couldn't find the right place to put it. I remembered from looking
at some photos on Pinterest, that a cool, different way of displaying art
work was to display it on the mullion of a window.


I like it! I can easily take the picture down when I close the blinds at night;
it's simply hung on a nail.


Several of you had asked how the audition for The Family Feud went this
past Sunday. Well...it was interesting! I had mentioned that it was my sister
who sent me the email and asked if Brian and I would want to audition with
herself, her husband, and a cousin. My sister and I have been more or less
estranged for around six years. I don't want to get into the reasons why on
this blog, but obviously I was surprised when I got her email. But I thought,
why not? It sounds like fun and it might be a good thing to somewhat 
reconnect. Well, there wasn't a lot of reconnecting going on, but the
auditioning for the game was a blast. We actually played part of a mock game
 while being video-taped in front of the hundreds of other people who were waiting
 to audition for the show. The funny thing is, the one person who I thought would 
totally rock the audition because he is normally animated and funny, wasn't that way
at all on camera. He froze up when trying to come up an answer to one of the
questions. You know how you sit at home and watch a game show and shout
out the answers and wonder why the people actually playing the game can't 
spurt out the right answer? It's a lot easier when you're sitting at home, relaxed
on your own sofa than when you're on TV and the whole world is watching you!

We left the conference center and went walking around Navy Pier (downtown
Chicago) for a little while since it was such a gorgeous day.


Other outings this week...the local nursery for perennials that were marked down
40%! I've always loved this nursery's beautiful displays and array of flowers.


We found some grasses that will be perfect for the small ditch area
that flanks our front driveway. We also found some bee balm for the
butterfly garden. Now for some digging and planting work for Brian. In
the rain. I'm blessed to have such a helpful husband. I honestly don't
have the kind of strength needed for digging large holes, plus that kind
of work really hurts my back. I already have three herniated disks in
my lower back; don't need any more! (Side note: yoga really helps with
my lower back pain.)


Another outing this week was IKEA. All I needed was one extra shelf
for the new Billy bookcases (it just figures...they were out of stock!), but this 
IKEA location happens to be a great central meeting spot for me and some family 
members. It was just me, my mom, and a cousin - two aunts couldn't make it - 
but we had a good time walking around looking at all the cool stuff and talking 
and catching up. And did you know that IKEA's cafe actually has pretty decent food
 - for really decent prices? I had a Waldorf chicken salad wrap and let me tell you,
 the chicken salad was as good as something I would make at home. And this is
 coming from someone who is a foodie and does a lot of home cooking.

 This piece of artwork at IKEA really caught my eye because it would be
 perfect for our bedroom - whenever we get to it! Our master bath is done in
 these  colors, so I want our bedroom to have the same color palette. The two
rooms need to flow.


And then I found this duvet and decided that when we finish re-doing Tim's room
(OK, so we haven't even started ~ or we the worst procrastinators that you know,
 or what?), that these colors will be perfect for his room. Tim's room will always be
 HIS room, of course, but since he's away at university and doesn't live here full-
time anymore, his room will also be a guest room.


I love the Swedish pillows that coordinate with the striped bedding.


Happy weekend, everyone. What are your plans? 


18 comments:

  1. Hi Mel! Our rain was much worse than yours, I guess it hit far south of you, as in me! Incredible lightning and thunder and downpour from 5:00 p.m. til 11:00. I was so grateful for it as I planted all of those flowers. I like your picture in the window...never thought of using that real estate! Your nursery looks abundant in flowers, I know the farmers and huge nursery's need to make a living, but it saddens me when they can't bring down prices on plants they are going to pitch. At this late planting date...mark 'em down! I like the picture for your wall and the bedding for Tim. You are wise...a lot of designers say to start with something you're drawn to and build around that. Personally, I'm waiting for my bedroom to speak to me before I buy/add one more single thing. Seriously, it will tell me what's in my heart and mind and I will make a room I'm happy and cozy in.

    I had a pretty good day being in and doing odd things here and there that I put off on sunny days. Not sure if we will go to the lake tomorrow, I need Al to go with me to get blinds for the bedroom and I need something to go in the wall to hold that humongous mirror. We also have old firewood here that I want to burn in our little port~a~pit as it's near the shed and I'm afraid of termites! A shed cleanout is next on my list!

    So sorry, Sweetie, for a comment as long as your post!!! Happy Weekend! :)

    XO,
    Jane

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't mind long comments - talk away! Your shed cleanout sounds like what's needed in my garage!

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  2. Hi Melanie, we are expecting rain tonight. Weekend plans- some of our children will be in town for the local university football game.

    I like the tree painting a lot. I am not an artist and I don't know the price of it but I really think it would be a doable look to paint and semi-copy yourself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, Rhonda...if that were doable for me - sure! But it's not. So I pay for art work like that. It's $129. It won't be happening for a long time anyway. We are doing Tim's room first.

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  3. Melanie - love that bedding and the picture!

    Judy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think Tim will like the bedding for his room re-do - it's all the colors he likes and it's rather masculine!

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  4. 1. So funny how the weather is all over the country. Heavy snow in the Dakotas, rain in your area, 85 degrees and perfect in my little part of the world.
    2. How fun to do Family Feud. One of my fellow teachers was on the show with his family 25 years ago and he totally blew it with his answers. I think they ended up winning.
    3. I wish there was an IKEA near me, but then again, I am glad there isn't because I would spend too much money.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Stores like IKEA can be very tempting. However, when you really need something, it's a great place to look because their prices are so reasonable. I especially like their selection of curtains - and they're really inexpensive.

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  5. How fun that you got to audition for the tv show! Your turning leaves are so pretty! Ours have just barely started. And I'll have fewer leaves now, with the loss of our pear tree.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. The leaves are falling by the ton now. Sweeping the front porch and sidewalk is like shoveling while it's still snowing. ;-)

      Delete
  6. I can't imagine auditioning for a TV show! How fun.I love your pix. Going to IKEA is always a fun adventure. Have a great weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was a lot of fun! The young guy who was leading us was very upbeat and funny; knew just how to lead a group and make sure we all had a good time. But yet he was professional, too. Thanks for stopping by!

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  7. I love that picture for your bedroom. It gives me an idea for a painting.

    Wish we had an IKEA nearby also a Container Store.Well, maybe not..the more I think about it. I would be there a lot of the time.

    We had that thunderstorm that you spoke of. I don't remember the last time we had one.

    Have a great weekend...Balisha

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Schaumburg - the town IKEA is in - has a Container Store, too! I've never been in there though.

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  8. I wish we had IKEA nearby but I have shopped online and that was pretty good. I like their bedding. I understand about the game show; when I was in high school I competed on a "knowledge bowl"-type show that was broadcast on local TV and it was stressful under the lights with the cameras on you! My school did end up winning the championship, which was really exciting, but we all had a freeze-up somewhere along the way! I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The experience is always fun...I would love to try out for Wheel of Fortune!

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  9. Oh yes, having breakfast (super cheap) or lunch is a must when going to Ikea. Can't they just ship you a shelf?

    The FF audition sounds like it was a blast!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will have to check and see how much shipping costs for a shelf. I know their home delivery is quite expensive. Thanks for the idea!

      Delete

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