reading pile

One of my greatest pleasures in life is reading.

My reading pile is actually much bigger than this - I have hundreds of books that I haven't

even read yet - but these are the books I've recently received in the mail

 through various sources.

I just finished reading "Flight Behavior". Barbara Kingsolver has always been

one of my favorite authors, but I was disappointed with her newest book.

The characters weren't developed, and the storyline was rather boring.

I kept waiting for something exciting to happen, and it never did.

Kingsolver is a biologist and it really shows in this book. Nothing wrong with that,

but all the scientific facts about butterflies and global warming in this story

made my eyes glaze over. She should've saved all that for a non-fiction book.

I started Anne Lamott's new book, "Help, Thanks, Wow" last night.

It's a short book and I could've read it all in one sitting, but I had to get to bed.

It is wonderful, heartfelt, inspiring - and hard to put down.

My husband got to "Gone Girl" before I did. He loved it. I'm a bit "afraid" 

to read it. I normally don't get into thrillers, and this one sounds a bit scary.

Can't wait to delve into Miss Mustard Seed's new book, "Inspired You"!

I'd love to hear what books you've recently escaped into or what

you're currently reading.

 

 

christmas table runner

Jazzing up the kitchen table with a cute table runner found at Target.

I think I need a white tablecloth to go underneath the runner though.

Sometimes it's hard to find the right-sized tablecloth for this small table.

Will be searching in stores this week!

 Looks hand-stitched, doesn't it?

 Linking up to Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday #19

all will be well

Thanks for the comforting comments and prayers for Tim's safety as he traveled

 all through the night last night. I didn't get much sleep due to anxiety

 and the cats bothering me, but thank God, Tim arrived safely in Gatlinburg at 9 a.m. today.

And now, today, I'm back under contractor craziness.

Last May, my house was in disarray because of the entire first floor being painted.

I live in a ranch-style house, so that basically meant every room of the house.

Now we're having the two bathrooms semi-remodeled. We're just not having the bathtub

 in the main bath replaced, nor the shower stall in the master bathroom replaced,

 due to limited $$.

I thought this would be easy because it's just the two bathrooms. Ha! You forget how much

 stuff is in the bathrooms (especially underneath the sinks) that has to be totally cleaned out and put...somewhere! Which means piled in the bedrooms. And then I forgot that the contractors were going to patch the hole in my closet wall, so I just finished taking all our clothes and shoes out of the closet and putting everything on Tim's bed and floor. All the pictures in the hallway had to be taken down in case the contractors bump the walls.

 The new toilets, sinks, vanities, flooring, and light fixtures are all crammed in the spare bedroom.

The noise was so bad today, of course, and I had the kitties locked in the basement. They were totally freaked out. I ran errands most of the day but when I got home and the contractors left, I let the cats out and they slept five hours straight in their usual places upstairs! They obviously didn't rest or sleep in the basement. Poor fur babies.

  Have been doing laundry tonight, taking apart my closet, moving furniture, and took my shower since I can't do so in the morning (won't have time, then won't have a bathroom available). Didn't have time to go to my Monday night yoga class. Brian had to run to both Menards and Home Depot to get last minute stuff that the contractors need. I think we'll both sleep well tonight!

I know that when the bathrooms are done by the end of the week, it'll all be worth it.

And Tim will be home, too.

All will be well.

anxious on sunday night

It's 10 pm and my son just got in a car with two friends for a 12 hour road trip.

We live in northern Illinois and they are driving all the way to Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

I am excited for Tim, as the reason for this trip is that he's photographing

his friend's mother's wedding. Tim's passion in life is art - particularly photography - 

and that's what he's majoring in, too. This is his first "big" photography job.

But my mama heart is nervous with Tim traveling a long distance in a car, especially overnight.

He's my "baby" and since Phil passed away, my one and only. So I tend to be a

bit over-protective and extra-anxious, unfortunately knowing that life can end in a split second.

The cats have been anxious today, too ~ especially Clementine. Animals know their human

is leaving when the suitcases come out, and they don't like it. Clementine immediately

took up residence on Tim's suitcase.

You should've seen her face when he walked out the door. She was perched on

the ottoman in the living room with a very worried look on her face, just staring out the door.

The picture below wasn't taken tonight, but it's a recent one ~ and one of my faves of Clementine.

Well, my dear friends, I'm going to bed now and hoping to get some sleep.

I told Tim that when I wake up in the middle of the night (and that's inevitable, because I always wake up at least a couple of times, and now with him traveling, I'm sure I'll be up quite often), I will text him to see how he's doing.

And...

I have contractors coming very early tomorrow morning to start on remodeling the bathrooms.

Since I haven't been working outside the home for 9 weeks now, I'm not used to getting up

so early (6 a.m.). I'm naturally a night owl and don't go to bed until midnight - 12:30, but then

I sleep in until 8 - 8:30. So, this will be a big switch for me this coming week - and maybe

into next week, too.

Goodnight. Sleep tight.

mexican hot chocolate cookies

Let the holiday baking begin!

 I made Mexican Hot Chocolate cookies today.

The chocolate dough is rich and flavorful on its own,

but right before baking you roll the dough balls in a mixture of

sugar, cinnamon, and ~ surprise! ~  chili powder.

The cinnamon and chili powder are what really adds the element

of depth and spice to this cookie without overwhelming it.

The recipe is from Jo-Anna at A Pretty Life in the Suburbs.

Do yourself  ~ and your friends and family, if you choose to share ~ a favor

and make these for the holidays. Jo-Anna says they're especially good

with a glass of Baileys, but I'll have to take her word for it.

I'm too full from dinner stuffed from sneaking bits of the dough

and a couple of cookies as soon as they came out of the oven!

Have you done any holiday baking yet?

quick and easy centerpiece

 I went in my back yard and snipped a couple of branches off a pine tree.

Stuck the branches into a clear, glass vase

and filled the vase with water...

Added some cranberries to the vase - they float!

And then topped with a couple of floating candles

that I found at Goodwill.

Ta-da!

Even looks pretty in the daytime when the candles aren't lit.

Vase ~ already had

Pine branches ~ free

Cranberries from a package ~ a few cents

Candles from Goodwill ~ $1

Linking up to Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House

the art of making things

 Papercrafting...cards, scrapbooking, mixed media ~

Do you indulge?

I don't necessarily consider myself crafty, especially compared to a lot of you

out there in Blogland. I don't sew, knit, or crochet. I don't make my own

ornaments or Christmas decorations. I think that's why I'm especially in awe

of those of you who can do any or all of these things!

I do enjoy my papercrafting, however. I've made a few scrapbooks;

I sometimes make homemade cards; I'm working on a Smashbook;

and I've also made a couple of pictures using scrapbooking papers,

embellishments, and rubber stamps.

 I made this bird picture a few years ago.

 And this picture, I made a little over a year ago.

It's temporarily on top of my secretary desk in the master bedroom, leaning 

against the wall in a vignette setting.

 Do you do any crafting? If so, what kind? Do you make things 

for yourself or loved ones?

Linking up to Claudia's Favorite Thing #14