the one where Tif learns to quilt (well, a little bit)...

i have discovered that owning a bedspread adds on fifteen minutes to my morning routine...i think part of this is to do with the fact that our bed is a king size platform number from good old Ikea. it seemed such a fabulous idea three years ago but now i own a bedspread i am not quite so sure. i make one side look just perfect and then i march over to the other side being very careful not to break my shin bone on the corner...give a little tug and voila, the perfect side shifts and it all goes horribly wrong.
after struggling with my bed making yesterday i decided that i needed some crafting therapy. i have made two dishcloths to date and am now ready to do something else...am i the only one that finds it hard to make the same thing over and over...

i took out Miss Margery and dusted her off, put in some thread and looked around my space. now for a few of you who may be wondering why i am not doing my usual thing with the slips etc even though i have time on my hands, well i have discovered that ladies underpinnings hanging in your studio, on your landing, in the utility room and in the bedroom from every possible 'hanging space' does not encourage people to view your home. so hence they were packed away long long ago...

so Miss Margery tried to cooperate, but quite frankly (and i say this in whispered tones) she is rather sick...i fear she is heading the way of Miss S. Machine, it is only a matter of time.

my eyes lit upon my little white Eames rocking chair, then i unearthed one of my favorite books and before i knew it my little brain was hatching a plan...somewhere in the depth of the closet was a small piece of wadding or is it batting, who knows and who really cares...my lovely friend Tasha had given me a while ago. and so dear readers i attempted my first piece of quilting in the shape of a cushion...not sure i am quite up to par with the professional quilters amongst us but i was excited that it actually worked and more to the point Miss Margery didn't just chew it up and spit it out...

i added one doily, two patches and some little labels made from scraps and hey presto, my rocking chair wouldn't look out of place in a japanese craft book...and just so you know, this is where i sit with a cup of tea in the afternoon, breathing in deeply, surrounded by just a 'little bit of dottie' and it's keeping me sane...

she had a helping hand with the crafting ~ Tif

the one about 'the theory'...

so my theory was tested and i have to tell you my rebellion yesterday did not cause a realtor to call...no it caused the realtor to call first thing this morning, on a day when the kids have a 'no school day', when we are lazing around in our pyjamas, with the remains of last night's school harvest party surrounding us, beds unmade, laundry in piles ready to wash etc...you get the picture don't you, basically a typical morning in most households that contain kids and pets.

i had not achieved breakfast or worse still, drunk my morning tea and so there was nothing to do about it except pull out all the stops and run the show like a military operation..

"our #1, you can vacuum upstairs, downstairs and in between"

"okay" she replies

"our #2..."
"sorry no can do, i have to take a shower" (she's fourteen, enough said)

"our #3, grab the tub of Method wipes and get to work on all the sinks, remove all 'spat out, dried up' toothpaste...plus get those toilets clean"

"okay" he replies whilst donning my pink washing up gloves

"our #4, you get the duster and start dusting every surface that you can find"

"yipee" he says "my favorite job"

after ten minutes of some serious 'buckling down' to the tasks in hand the phone rings, it's a friend for our #4. i hear him say "i'll be out in a minute i just have to finish dusting"

enough to warm any woman's heart i feel...and i wished right there and then for my boys to always be man enough to say in life "i just have to finish dusting" and possibly whilst wearing pink washing up gloves...

wishing you lovely thoughts for the weekend ~ Tif

janet clare ~ part two...

obviously if you mention a 'potential buyer' is coming to your house before it happens then you jinx it...not fifteen minutes before they were due and just as i was scrambling to get all kids out of the place (in might i add the pissing rain) the phone rings and i'm told by the realtor "sorry, we're not going to be able to make it now"...what do you say to that. i know, if you are a Brit then you say "oh thank you very much"...WHY would YOU say THANK YOU when you have spent the best part of the day ferreting away pets, pet hair, pet beds, kids, kids crap, cleaning loos, vacuuming etc etc...that's what i asked myself when i got off the phone, "Tif" i said in my head "why do you thank someone when really you want to scream i have a life, could you not have told me five hours ago, or better still why the frigging **** did you call in the first place to make an appointment"...

well now i have got that off my rather flat chest i am feeling much better and quite ready to get on with today, and part of getting on with today involves me being a rebel...yes that is right dear readers I AM NOT GOING TO VACUUM or SCRUB THE SINKS or PICK UP USED DOG'S HAIR. and you know what that means don't you. i am guaranteed to get a call from a realtor...let us test this theory and i will get back to you on it tomorrow...

in the meantime we must talk about the lovely janet as she is a two parter remember...yesterday we marvelled at her sewing and knitting talents, well today i have to tell you that she inspired me greatly with her dish cloth. when i read the post and then clicked on the link for patterns, well that was it..."HURRAH" i said to myself, there solves my 'christmas pressie' dilemma. every year i try hard to make our christmas presents for our family members across the pond...it is just perfect because we don't see them, they are able to groan and roll their eyes at another handmade squishy gift and i am none the wiser. so it works out just fine for all of us.

i announced to my man that i had found the perfect gift, thanks to janet...i told him i am going to knit every one dishcloths and not just any old dishcloths, oh no i am going to use eco friendly yarn in the hope of making a positive statement. my man did not leap up from his laptop and twirl me around the kitchen exclaiming "you are amazing, you are so clever, what a fantastic idea" (i am quite sure that would have happened in little house on the prairie) nope, he questioned whether people would really want, NEY use knitted dishcloths (i know you are feeling rather faint at the coldheartedness of his comment, it took me a while to regain my composure i can tell you) then he quickly added "i am concerned for you having to knit so many and how your wrists will hold up"...(yeah, right)

so i found some eco yarn from here, it turned up two days ago, i printed off some patterns and now i have completed one dishcloth, yes that's right one down and god only knows how many left to make (i have a largest family)...i am already trying to calculate what my average turn out has to be per week for me to get them done and mailed in time from Christmas, plus i have plans to make tea towels (not knitted but out of recycled linens)

as our #1 pointed out "who on earth would use a knitted tea towel to dry dishes" i wanted to point out "who on earth in my house knows what 'drying dishes' is"...

i'm off to school (worried about getting an allergic reaction) to teach art to a bunch of 12 year olds with my friend Beth and wondering how i was mistaken as somebody that has 'art knowledge'...i think the word 'craft' sounds too similar to 'art' and there lies the mix up...

she's earning her halo ~ Tif

janet clare ~ part one...

yep that's right dear readers, the lovely janet clare is a two parter because i just can't fit in everything i need to say in one post...

so let's just jump right in...last week janet asked me if i would like to do a swap...it was a perfect day to ask me, it cheered me up no end. i was feeling as 'dull as dishwater' and her mail came at just the right time...so i packaged up and sent my 'swap' along with a few other goodies and then sat and waited for the mail man...

i have to tell you it really is like being a kid again, getting all excited knowing something lovely is coming your way but you don't know what...well i didn't have to wait long as janet did her 'thing' that she does so well and sent it on its way...

and now i am the proud owner of a portrait of myself, my stripey tights and used dog...all stitched on to a lovely piece of blanket...i can not wait to put it up on the wall in our new place. i showed it off to all members of the family and also used dog, who seemed to be most impressed.

janet also sent me one of her beautiful knitted face cloths that i have been admiring from a far...and that leads me to part two...

but you'll have to wait for that until tomorrow as i have to vacate the house because we have a viewing...yipee! now let's not get our hopes up but we must think positive thoughts here...i have checked all bathrooms are clear of dodgy smells and i have also caved in and bought a bedspread for my bed.

i know it sounds odd but i am going to have to hide away my 'britishness in the bedroom' and cover up my bedlinens. i stood in 'bed,bath and beyond' with my 20% coupon in my little 'paw' looking up and down the aisles desperately trying to find a "grown up" bedspread that i liked enough to spend money on and that was neutral enough for viewing purposes...isn't that the most ridiculous thing you will ever read, but you read it right...i am buying a bed cover to sell my home. the person that buys my house will not buy my bed cover and yet my bed cover may very well be the thing that makes them want to buy my house...

she is feeling a little light headed over the nuttiness of it all ~ Tif

hey good looking what ya got cooking...(not me, Allysa!)

the next of my parcels came from the lovely Laura, it actually landed on my doorstep in September. i can remember bringing it in and just popping it on the side because although it was addressed to me it was in an amazon box and from past experience near Christmas or a Birthday i have opened amazon boxes and seen things that i shouldn't have seen...(completely accidently you understand, teehee)

as it was close to my birthday i just presumed that my man was thinking ahead...so later that night when he got home i told him of the parcel. "i didn't order anything" (silly me)...how strange i thought, so i opened up the package and inside was a cook book, "at home with magnolia by Allysa Torey"...just for me.

Laura is another one of my lovely cyber pals...she obviously felt my anguish over cooking and more to the point probably lay awake at night worrying for my children and the horrors that lay before them at the table...

as you can see from the pictures it was easy to fall in love with the book, i read the recipes and took note of important things like..."try to only cook with what is seasonal" very sound advice i felt after all it just stands to reason that anything in season is going to taste so much better than something that isn't...

after reading all the text i then concentrated on the pictures...i knew then and there i wanted to live inside of this cook book...and as i pen this post today and glance at the pictures i have a little pang of regret at cutting off my braids, after all Allysa looks great in every picture and i am sure it is something to do with her hair...

i am getting all excited now about the thought of growing a few veggies, herbs and flowers in our new garden. there are three rather neglected kitchen garden patches that with a bit of tender loving care may come back to life...thank you Laura for inspiring me.

and i am happy to report that i did manage to cook an edible (don't click on this picture Tracy or anyone else that doesn't eat meat) roast chicken in my crock pot a few weeks back. the only problem i am encountering now with my cooking (apart from making it look attractive and appealing) is the fact that our #2 is vegetarian and our #4 has given up eating chicken on the principal that you don't eat a future pet ( i swear i've told you that one before...i think i'm losing my 'razor sharp' memory skills, must be something to do with being 39).

she's finished her blankie ~ Tif

a friend in need is a friend in deed...

autumn is upon us, the leaves are dropping fast on the maples and pumpkins abound the neighborhood...(gosh that sounds very poetic)...
my mailbox over the past few weeks has been heaving with goodies (slightly exaggerated but it sounds so exciting)...there is nothing better then going to collect the mail and finding something unexpected amongst all the dreary stuff. i bring it in and then our #3 and #4 always start asking "is is for me? who's it addressed to" and i have great pleasure in saying "nope, it's for me"...so i thought dear readers, this week would be a great week to share a few of the treats that have come my way. ("why's it a good week Tif ") well since you ask, i will admit that i am coming down with the dreaded condition that bloggers near and far fear...i have "bloggers block"...i hope it is just a small dose and that i will be up and raring to go before long, but in the meantime i am going to concentrate on some of the lovely people out in cyber world that have come into my little world through my blog...

it is the one thing that constantly amazes since i started my little blog earlier in the year, i really had no idea that just penning a few words each day would lead me to so many wonderful caring people...i liken my cyber friendships to old fashioned pen pals...people that you probably will never meet, but you connect over common interests and before you know it they become a part of your life...i find myself thinking of my 'invisible friends' all the time, i might see something and think "oooh, so and so would just love that" or "what a hoot (do i really think 'hoot') i know the very person who would be laughing at that with me"...it truly is one of the best things in my life...

so the first of my parcels to kick start our week is from the lovely gigibird...

i like Lynn a whole lot, she is not a stranger to many of you i am quite sure...the first think i liked about Lynn was her wise straight talking ways and the damn fine cupcakes she whips up at the drop of a hat. with her 'partner in crime' Stella, she becomes Florence Hope...and together they craft the most beautiful creations which you can find here

the parcel contained a beautiful vintage nightie (sadly photographing the color blue is not my forte, the nightie is more aqua than blue)...it fitted me just perfectly. she also very considerately sent me some pretty dusters to make light work of my cleaning (which is all i seem to do these days). what a thoughtful friend...now to spare anymore blushes i shall just say, "thank you gigibird"...you made my day with your kindness

only four more rows left of her blanket ~ Tif

batten down the hatches...

there was a storm warning yesterday, normally i don't take a lot of notice of these things...but after the last one that left us with out power for days i try to be a little bit more organized.

of course along with the loss of power (or in another case last winter, a huge snowstorm) comes the realization that school is cancelled...my preparation goes along the lines of checking that we have some canned food in the larder, unearthing our hot water bottles from the closet, logs for the fire and then most importantly, i check my yarn stash. if i am going to be holed up for days together with my nearest and dearest then i must have a 'yarn' project to keep me 'nice and pleasant'...

so as the winds started to pick up i headed out to the yarn store...i have been greatly motivated by my growing crocheted blanket. having knitted blankets in the past i know what a length of time it can take, not to mention the weight on your needles and also the fact you definitely have a front and a back to the finished article.

not so with my crocheted, striped blanket...the only difference to the front is it has doilies stitched on, otherwise it is completely reversible. plus just doing a double crochet stitch is very straight forward so i am able to concentrate on 'little house on the prairie' and even when i get a little blurry eyed in the sad bits i can still see the stitches because i am using 'chunky' wool...you can't ask for more than that from your 'yarn' project

anyhow, i found a lovely organic cotton yarn (very soft to the touch) and in a beautiful brown with a hint of mauve (not gray as my photo would suggest)...i am thinking it will crochet up a treat as a scarf and also a knitted tea cosy...

next i came across a wool yarn that has different shades of pinky/mauvey/browns in it...once again i see it as a scarf or wrap and my plan it to crochet it length ways...i shall let you know how it goes. but first i must finish my blanket which is three quarters of the way done. i know if i start the scarves, the blanket will end up a U.F.O, which i have a feeling my cushion cover is fast becoming...

she's wishing you a blustery free weekend where ever you are ~ Tif

footnote: to the reader that left me an anonymous comment, my apologises to you...my postings on my blog reflect just a small window of my life...i can only say "sorry". i am totally aware that there is a huge amount of suffering and heartache that is going on in the world that far out weighs 'trying to move house'...

try as i might...

i have been trying really hard for a while to be chipper and making an effort to think positively each morning, but unfortunately i can't shake the feeling of despair.

we have been through the inspection and out the other side on the 'mock tudor number' and now all we need to do is sell our place and we are home and dry...

but alas the 'buyers' are thin on the ground, my telephone is not ringing off the hook and after twelve days on the market i am feeling down hearted. i know it isn't very long in the current state of 'house selling' but i just can't shake my mood...yesterday as i was ferrying our #2 to dance the evening was drawing in and real autumnal weather is here, i told myself that if all i have to be down hearted about is trying to sell my home then i am a lucky person. but of course it didn't work...

i think the problem is i had thought we would be in a new place by Christmas. i was busy picturing where to put the tree not to mention the vintage style wallpaper i have found, just perfect for the kitchen nook...and then there is the perfect mid century modern round table just waiting at hivemodern to complete the look

still i need to try and get a more positive attitude, after all we did get one call from a realtor last week wishing to bring some clients by. so i did a quick once around the house, bundled the kids into the car and holed up in Starbucks for an hour...only to arrive home and find she hadn't been. ten minutes later (this gets very visual i'm afraid) i have two of my brood locked in the toilets doing their thing when the front door is unlocked and someone calls "is anyone home"..."shit" i whisper (never a truer word spoken) to our #1..."quick, find some smelly stuff and spray it in the bathrooms"...

as we frantically tried to mask the smell coming from the toilets the prospective buyers were climbing the stairs...it is safe to say that by the time they got to the top step my house smelled a delightful combination of sewage and a brothel thanks to our #1's most overpowering cheap perfume lingering with the aftermath in the toilets...

thinking it really might be a while before she moves ~ Tif

daydreaming...

well, i will admit that i have had a little trouble concentrating since i found Jared and his blanket...i find that my mind is drifting off when i should be focusing on the task at hand. i am beginning to think that there maybe a call for a pin up calendar featuring male knitters...and i would be more than happy to see Jared, Orlando, Colin and Johnny amongst the pages doing a bit of knitting...

i have at last sorted my camera, seems a small issue of taking notice of flashing battery sign and changing batteries would have sorted it sooner. never the less i now have the other two pictures to show you that i worked on last week...

my plan of campaign is to have them on the wall in our new home along with some other artworks that i have been busy collecting...until then they are just propped up in the studio

that's it for today as my blanket is beckoning me and my thoughts are elsewhere

she says smiling ~ Tif

he's all man...

last winter i taught our #3 and #4 to knit...it was a 'heart warming' moment in a mother's life to come downstairs on a Sunday morning to find her two boys not watching cartoons or playing on the game console, but sitting on the sofa in their pyjamas knitting. (let's just pause a while so you can all take a deep breath and just feel that moment). i am quite sure in my old age i will look back and remember that memory as occurring every weekend, i know that it happened only one morning but i think it is perfectly acceptable in forty years time (god willing) that i believe it happened more than once...

interestingly our #4 carried his knitting around in the car so that he would be able to take every opportunity to knit in public. this caused quite a stir amongst the women folk of my town. but our #3 told me as i taught him the 'knit stitch'..."do not breath a word of this outside of the house". i explained to my boys that when they were older a sure fire way to win a girl's heart is not to stand at the pub bar and down a load of lager, getting completely rat arsed and then saying stupid comments with their mates. no i told them that all you have to do is have a caring soul, look slightly unkempt and knit...what girl could resist a 'deep thinker', slightly rugged guy (obviously needing looking after) and then the 'clincher'...he can KNIT...

well our #3 was not convinced by this, but now i have the proof. what lady across the land would not like to have this man living in her house...oh the joys of owning a man that can produce such a beautiful item.

and so i shall continue to encourage my boys to 'knit' thus hopefully guaranteeing them a chance to win the heart of some fair 'crafter' out there...

and in the meantime i shall get on with my crochet blanket that i have been busying myself with. my first big crochet project and i am loving it, my wrist however is not...now i am popping glucosamine tablets along with antihistamines (allergies to wool) so that i may continue with it...

oh the scarifices she makes for her craft ~ Tif

it wasn't pretty...

i have been tearing my hair out for the past few days dealing with 'internet issues'...most of the time it didn't work, then occasionally it would tempt me with a glimpse of a window, be painstakingly slow and then disappear altogether again...it wasn't pretty in my house and after two days of this, i decided to take drastic action. i had two options, choice number one, lob the bloody thing out the window (which i realized would not heighten my chances of selling my house) or choice number two, ask my man.

i did not really ask, more like pick up the phone, shout obscenities down it and then huff and puff around the house until he came home that evening. when i returned later that night having been at my 'yak and yarn' meeting (a terribly important meeting involving women, talking and knitting in a coffee house) i enquired as to the state of our internet..."oh that, yep that's all fixed now". "well what was wrong?" said in a slightly narky voice..."nothing really just a wiggle of a loose connection at the back and it's all okay now"...so you are telling me i had spent two days of being very 'cross' and 'huffy' listening to people complaining "i can't get my homework done" or "i can't get on neopets" all because of a cable that needed a little wiggling...why oh why did i not pay attention in school, i am sure at some point a teacher would have covered that very important topic of 'technical issues' and the answer 'wiggle a cable'...

in between having a very 'hateful relationship' with the computer (please note, i do not name my computer, maybe if i did, it would feel loved and wouldn't loosen it's cables on me) i had a bit of R&R with Miss Margery (oh i do hope R&R means what i think it means) and the results are four pictures...

two of which i have for you to peruse...the other two are waiting for their pictures to be taken (alas my camera is also not playing fair this week) so i shall save those for later...

she's been back to the yarn shop ~ Tif

things that make me smile ~ part two...

i found my new friend in the bric-a-brac aisle at our local thrift store...i haven't been for so long that the place has had a 'make-over'. i can't find anything and it takes me twice as long. so there was my little friend with his twin just waiting to find a new home...i can not believe he hadn't been snapped up before me, what with his lovely bluey/green coloring and plastic teddy bear eyes and more to the point his fabulous price tag, $2.95, what a steal...

i popped him in my cart along with his brother and bought him home. i quickly wrapped up his brother and promptly sent him on his way to my friend Beth's house so he could live a happy life...and my little friend was given the name of 'Mr Erol' (don't ask me why) and put in 'kathleen's cupboard' with his new family, 'Mr Flynn' and 'little one'. (i do have guilt about separating him from his twin, but i knew he would have friends in 'kathleen's cupboard)...i am quite sure that one day my little owl collection with the plastic eyes will pay for someone's college tutition, it is just a matter of time...

he has been a good friend to me in the few days i have known him...as i was having a very low moment staring blankly at my fabric stash, he helped me get inspired...and now my little cogs are turning and my fingers are doing what they do best. i am liking the results...

she's slowly going banana's waiting for a buyer ~ Tif

things that make me smile ~ part one...

me and used dog are a right pair at the moment. she is suffering from 'running too hard' and is now a pathetic sight as she limps to her food bowl and back to bed. and me? well i am suffering from R.V.S. ("what's that Tif?") you may very well ask. i self diagnosed my problem last night, as i was nursing my aching back, tired wrist and arm. i said to my man, "i know what's wrong with me, i have R.V.S." of course it took at least five minutes for his face to register any concern or even acknowledgement of what i had said..."do you hear me, i think i am suffering from a little known condition called Repetitive Vacuuming Syndrome"...

so this week, to take our minds off "waiting for a buyer" and my one bulging bicep, i thought i would share a few things that have made me smile a lot...

so today we start with my mum...

my mum lives in a lovely seaside town in South Devon, the kind with a promenade where ladies of long ago would parade up and down with their lovely dresses and parasols...it still has people parading up and down admiring the sea view but they are lacking in long dresses and parasols...and in some cases when it's hot, lacking in hardly any clothing at all, gasp...

now in this sleepy seaside town (actually it isn't very sleepy at all, i just thought it sounded good) are two shops that make my heart skip a beat whenever i head home. both these shops would not look out of place in Nottinghill, London (not that i have ever been to Nottinghill...i am using my imagination, such a powerful tool). one contains clothing from companies such as NOANOA. the other household accessories from the likes of Lisa Stickley, Orla Kiely (you get the picture don't you...). for my birthday my lovely mum (and dad) gave me probably the best gift in the whole wide world (definitely on par with a pinata and worth turning 39).

for the past few weeks i have been walking around with my knitting (which is growing) in the most wonderful bag (making me feel very grown up). i don't think i ever thought i would own an Orla Kiely item, after all they cost a pretty penny or two. i am so in love with it and as you can see, so is my bucket bag that i cart around with me...

and as if that wasn't enough to look at my lovely bag all day long, i get to look at my new very zizzy tights (from NOANOA) that my mum sent in the mail last week, perfect timing for the cold weather we are having...not one but two pairs...HURRAH for woolly tights, my favorite attire in the world and HURRAH for my mum, my favorite in the entire world...

she has a new friend ~ Tif

yawn...

well you have warmed me with your lovely words on the house...i really enjoy reading your comments and your thoughts...and i must add without sounding too soppy i hope, that you have really been a wonderful support to me in my 'ups and downs' of trying to move...

our #1 announced to me the other day after dropping by my blog that she felt my readership was probably falling asleep these days as my posts were rather dull. my little heart was gripped with panic and my brain thudded with the worry of "well, maybe you are becoming a bit tiresome and dull".

then last night our #4 announced he would like to start a blog. "very well" said i, "how about you start it when we move" (great delaying tactics)...he then asked what a blog was for (classic example of wanting something even though you don't know what you would do with it). my man said it was a place to voice your opinions..."oh" i said "i thought is was an online diary, i have always written mine like a diary, i'm not sure about putting my opinions out to the world" and so followed a big discussion on blogs and why people do it...

our #4 has decided to write about moving to a new place and the trials and tribulations of building a tree house and trying to think of which animal (apart from the obvious chickens) that we should add to our menagerie...

i on the other hand will try to make my little blog a bit more of a 'zippy' read for fear of having to blow cobwebs off my sleeping readers and to show just what a very interesting post this one turned out to be, i give you a picture of the 'growing' cushion cover which must be finished in time for the move. it wasn't until i had knitted 18" that i realized this pattern is a very thinly disguised 'moss' stitch little number...which would explain the incredibly slow progress i am making...

Tif ~ ("oh is she the one with the dull blog", "no, no you have her muddled up with someone else, she's terribly entertaining. she always has interesting line breaks in her posts...")

the one...

i know, i know...my absence could only mean one of two things. either i am elated and caught up in a whirlwind of moving house, or i am broken hearted again and staying under my duvet...

well i am pleased to tell you it is the former, yes dear readers we have come to an agreement on the gray house with the seller, we are waving a piece of paper in our hands that tells us so...

and more importantly after two months of waiting, my house has a sign outside the door that reads "For Sale"...

back of gray house

so i did it, i set the goal of two weeks and i managed it. "but Tif, how do you know this is the right one for you" i hear you ask, "after all you were in love with the yellow house for so long"...well, i have been doing a lot of thinking about that (oooh that's possibly very dangerous) whilst 'a vacuuming' and 'a cleaning' my house and here's what i thought...firstly i came up with lots of reasons why the gray house was a better choice, things like, closer to the kids friends, less land to take care of, i wasn't scared to use the toilets...things like that. but it was yesterday as i was standing in the gray house talking to my friend Laurie, while the inspector was doing his thing, that it suddenly dawned on me why i knew this was the right move.

every time i have visited my 'new/old mock tudor number' it has felt more and more like home, i know we could be happy there, i look around and know it has that lovely feeling about it. whereas the more i went to the yellow house i started to feel uneasy about the extent of work needed on it, the cost, how we would be living for years in a construction site...this started when my inspector broke my rose colored specs...

so that's how i know this ain't no 'rebound' romance, no siree...this is the real thing (and obviously i am counting my chickens again, but i do it so well, so why change a habit of a life time), this gray house is perfect for right now, for where my kids are right now and for where our lives are right now. it's a lovely place to rest my airstream (just a matter of time) and a few chickens...oh and we have now added a 'tree house' to the list...

yep, she's pretty made up ~ Tif