All's Quiet on the Western Front

... or Phase I is done of the house.




This is one of the during pictures. This time last year the house was green with brown trim.


this is the front porch. The "sidewalk to nowhere" is gone.

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The new kitchen which will be done in December (that will be Phase II). The cabinets will be about the same color as the microwave cart on the right of the picture.


And this is the dining room.

Hopefully, during December (while I am on vacation and not in the house) the kitchen will be destroyed and rebuilt to match the floors. There will be NO MORE WHITE CABINETS and no more WALLPAPER. My kitchen will probably be the same color as the rest of the house. SPICE! Sounds kind of boring but if I want a red kitchen this week and a purple one next week, I can just change the accessories and have it the way I feel. I may pick a color but I promise it won't be pink. They will not use pink paint. hee hee. Also, during that time the office floors will be done (in laminate like the rest of the house). Because my office carpet looks awful up against the dining room laminate floor. Yes, I have been convinced that I should do that.
Now, for the thank you speech:

I wish to thank:

"The 3 Amigos, Musketeers,or Stooges" (you pick one) - Josh x 2 and John-
Thanks for a barrel of laughs. It was worth the breakfasts and brownies just to have a great looking house.

Anytime you need breakfast or brownies(from the Brownies and breakfast diner) call and they will be ready. Sorry, I am not sharing all the brownie secrets but to say hershey chocolate bars!

Rios- Thanks for killing the attack snake. Even though, it may have been harmless, you got rid of it for us. Also, for anyone fighting pesky snakes.. SNAKE-AWAY doesn't work. It smells like moth balls and they still hang out wherever they want to go.

"Hercules" - Todd
Thanks for lifting my stove and lots of other furniture and for fixing the rangehood.

Mrs. Riffe - for helping to clean the house.

Well,during this adventure my pastor's family got to see the skeletons in my closet, (no lie- they found rubber skeletons in my closet). Snakes were seen and the big one DIED.

I have had several people stop by and comment on how great the house looks. They have been watching the progression of the house.
Hopefully, they will get more work in the neighborhood from this. The only problem with this is the commute, the traffic is awful.

I am Alive

I haven't posted in over a month. Don't give up on me. I just believe in the old-fashioned way to keep in touch - Pick up the phone and talk. I think I like to hear myself talk. My house is looking great. The floors are here and they are installed in one of the bedrooms. Actually, the boxes were put in one of the bedrooms. Just a little contractor humor.

The colors match now. I got a few expert opinions about the color of the foundation but I went with the majority of the consensus - the same color of the siding. (Actually, I thought that was right too but I wasn't sure). I have never had to do decorating before in my life. I went from my mother's decorations to early garage sale-apartment living with someone who decided that pictures on the wall was to damaging and you won't get the deposit back and then back to my dad's taste- which was vanilla - beige walls,beige baseboards, beige floors, brown carpet, you get the picture (yawn, just typing that). There are no really feminine touches in the house except for the pictures on the wall of the flowers (now) the styling products in the bath and the heels, dresses and skirts in the closets. I am not a frilly, girly girl. I would rather be dressed in my jeans or shorts and t shirt and bare feet. Lace and ruffles and flower arrangements are not my cup of tea, and I prefer diet pepsi! I like things cozy, comfortable and anything that applies to the KISS method (Keep it simple, stupid). Occasionally, I like fresh flowers but not always. Sorry, pink is not my favorite color, blue and purple are (but not together). Roses are beautiful (and I appreciate them) but my favorite flowers are daffodils, tulips, daisies, and those little white flowers that grow in the yard that show up after the first rain. The ones that look like tulips, but are actually weeds!
I really don't like contemporary stuff I like old fashioned real wood and upholstered furniture-brass and glass are too much to take care of. Maintenance free that's me! I would much rather shop for stuff at an antique store (or a junk store, I was being nice) than to go to Rooms To Go and pay a fortune. The older stuff has character. My tv is still an old console model with a wooden cabinet. The remote control takes a 9 volt battery! I do have a computer and an MP3 player but can't figure out how to get the music from the computer to the MP3 player. It is pretty sad to have to call up Best Buy to have the high school students teach you computer. Pretty soon the black and white volkswagen will be parked in my driveway permanently(THE GEEK SQUAD)

Well, before I start sounding like a reject for eharmony.com, I need to move on.

I am still in school. English and Applied Ethics. Going pretty well, so far.
Work: OT is supposed to stop at the end of October. We are prepared but don't think it will ever stop completely. I don't think that I have had a paycheck without OT in it for almost 1 year. I am truly thankful that God has blessed me with the ability to be at home to work and to be able to have the OT because I am still getting used to paying the electric, phone and water bills, taxes and property insurance. We had customer service week last week and we all got "gifts". I was trying to make a joke out of it but it sounded more like complaining. I need to apologize to the people I wsa talking to. I was comparing last years gifts to this years. Last years, we got around $50 in gift certificates and this year we got 3 pens, a keychain with a bottle opener, a 2008 planner and a mouse pad. Someone explained to me that even though it was a little bit, I should be thankful I have a job that I do from home- Thanks, Josh Vernoy!

Grace came home for homecoming services on 9/30. We had a great time on Saturday the 29th. We went shopping and the rule of the day was not to buy anything without a coupon. Worked out great! I was broke and she went back with a suitcase full, as usual!
On Sunday, she surprised the church when she came in. Mrs. Riffe cried. She actually thought she was at Crown for a minute when Grace walked up. Grace looked really like a teacher. I am so proud of her, even though I don't show it as much as I should. The sermon I heard was awesome. I helped in the kitchen during the sermon but I read some of it at Julee and Gay's house last Thursday night.

Grace will be coming home in about 3 wks for fall break the first weekend in Nov. But she won't be able to come home for Thanksgiving. We talked about it and she understands (and I do too!) that $899.21 is too much for a plane ticket. Besides, she would come in late Wednesday night and leave early, early Saturday morning to be back at school by 4pm for choir. We are going to have Thanksgiving during fall break and she wants a big family celebration so she requested that a couple of families from church come for dinner.

The choir is going back to England in March-she is excited. Pray for the funds to send her. It is $2000.00 this year.

Her classes end on 12/6, then she has an interim from 12/6-14 and my classes end on 12/12. Pray I have the funds for next semester and the company will continue to help pay my tuition.

I am flying into Norfolk, VA on 12/15 for the Christmas Party with my dad's family and have to be back at work on the 24th. Grace has interims the 6-14, so she will drive from Powell to Smithfield, VA on the 15th. Then, she will drive home. We will probably leave on the 21st and drive until we can't go any further and then be home before 2 pm on Saturday to pick up Spanky. We should have a good time.

and...
I am still on Weight Watchers, trying to follow it. I am still trying to meet my first goal 10% of my weight. It takes a long time and God is still teaching me patience. Then my next goal will be 30# and then 40# and so on and so on....