Can You Spot the Differences?

The top pictures was taken this morning just before noon.  The bottom picture was taken earlier this evening.  I didn't get everything done that I wanted to do, but then again, I never do.  My dear friend Anne will be here tomorrow.  There are so many things that we've wanted to do, but the weather is not cooperating.  If all we manage to do is visit and drink coffee, it will be enough!

Random Thoughts for a Gloomy Tuesday

With THGGM on vacation the first week of this year, I seem to have missed out on all of the new beginnings I was hoping to start this year.
So, here it is, in no particular order, what I am hoping to accomplish this year.
Nope.  I've got nothing.
Seventeen days into the year and I finally walked my first 30 minutes.  I did this IN my house and I'm very proud to announce that I did not get side tracked even once.  What I did discover were a few more doggy gag spots to scrub up.  Bleech.
Oh, and I DID choose a word for the year.  Wonder.  I wonder if I'll go anywhere with it.  There is sooo much wonder all around me.  Which brings me to my next wonder-full thought.  I wonder if I'll EVER get things sorted out around here.  2011 was a mind-boggling year.  Someday I may choose to post about it, but then again, I may not.
When I was thinking about 2012 in about November of 2011, one thing I wanted to do was actually complete a bunch of ideas I've had floating around in my head.  Sadly, only a few are still floating, the others must have sunk deep into the uncharted waters of my imagination.
And do you want to know why?  It's all because I discovered Pinterest.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.  Pinterest is heaven on earth to an idea person like me.  It's quite the opposite of that for someone who struggles to complete what she start.  Also me.
Another weird problem I contend with is my inability to give away those things that I did actually finish.  Because they NEVER look good enough when that time comes.  Or, they are totally impractical to give to people whom I KNOW are trying to get rid of stuff, not accumulate more.
Not accumulate more.., now THAT would be a good thing for me to latch on to this year.  To NOT accumulate more.  I'm making NO decrees here, as just the thought of not accumulating more stuff for more projects that never get finished - or if they do - never get given makes it kind of hard for me to breathe.
So maybe, just, maybe I'll hold off on buying spools of vintage thread, soft cotton fabric, rubber stamps, small wooden boxes, old game pieces, and other bits, bobs, and what-nots UNTIL I have things all sorted out again  (THGGM, if you are reading this, I'm not SURE I mean it yet.  TWiGGY).
Anyway...
Have I already mentioned that I've cut my caffeine consumption in half?  It did not seem wise to be taking blood pressure and anti-anxiety meds while hyping myself up on caffeine.  So far, I'm managing to stay awake.
Hopefully I'll be getting some more of my finds up on my simplythrift.blogspot.com site.  Because I have NO intentions to stopping being thrifty.  I just don't want to end up "hoardy".
And I have convinced myself to begin selling things on-line.  THGGM has started on Ebay.  I'm thinking Etsy, but I've made no commitment yet.
(good grief.  maybe i should take 2012 to work on my commitment issues!)
Oh, and for the record (because we have established that there IS a record) I am now counting down to Valentine's Day!  And notice that cute little red heart I found at the thrift store Saturday?  It was in a bag of small wooden hearts I bought for making Valentine's.  A perfect fit!

Not Sure Where the Weekend Went

THGGM spent most of it painting, papering, and sprucing up the bathroom off of our kitchen. And I must say, it looks wonderful. THGGM has gotten very handy in his old age. He even showed me some wallpapering tricks that my dad taught him.

My weekend was spent noticing odd things.

Nothing odd about Friday though. I got to have Feintsje all to myself all day long. A new favorite game of his is "Hey you! Watch me roll over!" LOVE this age when "How Big Is Feintsje?" NEVER gets old!

Now for the somewhat odd things.

Six high-school aged boys knocked on my door. Two of them had rakes. One of them asked if they could rake my yard. What was so odd was that ALL of the leaves were still attached to ALL of my trees. I had no idea what to say, so I pointed at the nearly leafless ground and muttered something like, "maybe later?"

There is a dead skunk in the road in front of our house. For how stinking long do those things stink? It smells as if everytime someone runs over it the stench is renewed. I don't like it.

The naturally available sparrow food must have run out. This morning sparrows were SCREAMING at our bird feeder. They came by the dozens and chirped their little hearts out while staring at me in the kitchen window. So THGGM filled it while I distracted them (he appears to have ptsd from having watched 'the birds' as a child - or maybe he just truly does not like birds, one cannot really say). And guess what? The bird feeder has not been touched. It's like they beg, but won't actually eat it until all of THGGM's cooties blow off.

And just for fun, we caught a mouse.

This week THGGM plans to start on the kitchen. A bit more painting and some wallpaper. Then, maybe, a refacing of the cupboards. He likes doing projects a little bit at a time. But, he likes to do this ALL THE TIME. I'm out of interesting places to put stuff. And we all know, I have a lot of stuff. Is that odd?

Once the kitchen is done, I am going to HAVE TO sort through stuff and either sell it or give it away. Because once it is DONE I can no longer say, "But these just might be the EXACT things I will need once the kitchen is done!"

This week, besides losing a filling, I broke a tooth.

I've been kind of a load lately.

Really whiny. I'm blaming it on hormones. And being odd. Old. I mean old.

Mrs. Hobblewobble Whines

Quite probably I shall be changing my name soon to Mrs. Hobblewobble. Why, you ask? Because I do both, and at the same time. I hobble. AND I wobble. I challenge YOU to try doing both. I bet you can't. I can. Because I am presently VERY much fatter than I have EVER been (and, i've been). And, this is the somewhat new part..,

For a while now I've had intermittent joint pain. Even way back when I still had young children of my own at home, I visited my doctor because of a very sore hip. I believe he said something profound like, "That happens sometimes".

In the past few years "that" has happened a bit more than just "sometimes". Sometimes it's a finger, other times my wrist. Recently a lump appeared on my left thumb, stayed for a few weeks - then disappeared. Oh, and my foot? That lump appeared with swelling while I was dragging my coughing body around Traverse City less than a month ago. The coughing quit a week after we got home, and just as mysteriously, so did the lump and the pain in the foot.

Then suddenly a week ago my left knee swelled up and I've developed quite a hobble. And, when I hobble, I wobble. Because I'm fat. It's so much more unattractive in one like me, who has never ever been described as cute. And to make matters even more difficult, I don't even have a great personality.

Now. Think back to that story from Friday (see below), when my loving THGGM "slug-bugged" me in my sore knee?

Well. Last night we stopped over to visit Oldest Son and Dil-1 who moved yesterday. He brought strawberry shortcake. THGGM thinks of doing nice things like that for people. I don't. After we moved, I wanted to be left alone for three years (only a month to go!) to recover from it. Anyway.., their new home is lovely, as are they!

But when it was time to leave, guess what THGGM did? Guess!

Did you guess?

He used my left knee to hoist himself off the couch.

Oh. My. Knee.

I checked my knee. I don't SEE a target painted on it, but apparently there is.

Have I mentioned lately that I am boring? Well then. You must know that boring people talk about themselves. A lot. I know this.

But I do not want to spend the rest of my life as Mrs. Hobblewobble. As Mrs. THGGM, yes. But without the hobbling and the wobbling and the inexplicable, transient, HORRIBLE pains.

And for exercise? I will hobble-wobble run to get away from THGGM.

There. I whined. It's one thing I'm particularly GOOD at.

For the record, if THGGM has any pains, he never talks about them. Well, except for the pain in his neck...

Unexpected Hours

Yesterday was one of THOSE days. If it hadn't been for the fact that there was an extra pair of hands here in the morning I believe that I just may have abandoned ship.

Okay. I wouldn't do that. But, I may have spun around in circles and collapsed to the floor.

Kado is teething and felt miserable.

Also, I do believe there is a limit to the amount of blueberries young children should be allowed to ingest. Just think about it. Okay. Don't.

Anyway.., at 4:15 when Famke awoke from her nap, I FINALLY was able to get Kado down for his.

Famke and Jonge happily skipped off to play.

Soon, Famke returned. She announced that Jonge had said she couldn't "play en dar EINy mooh".

When I peeked into the room, Jonge was cuddled up under the covers sound asleep.

Famke seemed sad about this development at first.

Until she discovered something that hasn't occurred much in her 2 1/2 years.

ALONE time with Beppe!

We sorted shells and counted them.

We played 'hide the shells'.

We found our "faboret" shells.

We lined up the Pez dispensers and counted those (sixteen present and accounted for, four missing in action).

She talked and talked and talked which was very fun for both of us.

And to top it all off, when Pake came home the boys were STILL SLEEPING, which meant Famke was able to have one-on-one time with Pake.

Not until then did I spin, twirl, and fall down with a loud thud.

At least I was holding my camera.

Thursday Randomness or Dumbness or Whatever

Such fun I have making puppets with/for Jonge, Famke and Kado.

Kado must think he is looking in a mirror!

So MUCH fun that today

I made one of THGGM.

Yes. That is about the only thing I did today. I made a Pake puppet. For myself. He actually has a rather square head, but it's him alright.

I seem to have caught something. That same something that started biting me last week.

Today I watched the Biography channel story about Sonja Henie. What I learned was that I never knew anything about her until today. Except that she skated.

Much of my day was spent on the phone trying to figure out why something hasn't been paid that should have been paid. This was my FIFTH phone call on this ONE topic and it made me very angry. Especially when it all should have been taken care of looooong looooong ago when the person told me it was taken care of. But it wasn't. All that needs to be done is a bill needs to be paid with money that the person already has. I do not have this money. This person has the money. But this person hasn't sent in an insurance premium payment for two months now. I have shown up in person, I have faxed, I have emailed and I have called.

I cannot think of anything else to do.

So, I color a wooden puppet and I watch Sonja Henie skate.

Tomorrow I think I shall try screaming.