Starting Over

I posted a while back about needing to get back into some kind a routine and I have still not taken the time to get in that routine.  I found a blog today called Home Sanctuary and wouldn't you know it, she's an organizational genius (my words, not hers)!  She has this group called Company Girls that do Small Things together.  It sounded interesting to me, and the three posts I read about getting a schedule that works for you was music to this girl's ears.  I tried the Flylady routine once and it stressed me out.  I know that it's great to go to bed with a clean kitchen sink (her main sticking point), but oddly enough some days I prefer to wash the dishes from the night before while I'm making dinner for the current day.  Weird and maybe lazy, but it works for me.  She's failed the Flylady routine herself and I found that rather cool in a bonding sort of way.  What really grabbed me though, was Rachel has sample plans for both Stay at Home Moms AND Work Outside the Home Moms.  This is wonderful because most of what I've ever seen is aimed towards Stay at Home Moms and it's not anywhere close to workable for the others.

I'm going to try it.  Today I won't get a lot done since I've spent the morning cuddling with my little one watching DVR'd NCIS: Los Angeles and we've got to get cleaned up for volleyball games this afternoon.  I am going to at least get the list she suggested together and tomorrow I'll work on the schedule while I'm sitting at volleyball practice.   Since I LOVE lists and charts, I should do good with this setup.  I'll have to be sure to set time for my plants too.  This morning I went out to turn the heater off in the greenhouse during a commercial and ended up back out there with my camera and scissors.  I have blooms starting on an unnamed Sedum to be share and needed to trim back the dead stems on the Vick's Plant.  While I was out there, I went ahead and pulled the cover off of the succulent tub and pulled a few of the baby 'Mother of Millions' out to bring in the house.  I'm worried they're going to die and that would not make me happy.  I think I need daily time for the plants!! 

The last two weeks have been spent trying to figure out why our oldest was experiencing severe stomach pains.  Finally after missing ten days of school right after the Christmas break, we got an answer and she's back to her normal self!  Hallelujah!!!!!  It's hard to get into any kind of a schedule when your normal routine's been run a muck, so now we should be able to make some progress.  I suppose I don't have an excuse not to get back on the treadmill now, do I?  Darn!

Now to those blooms...

Happy Saturday!!

Fertilizer Friday

I've found myself wandering over to Tootsie's Flaunt Your Flowers/Fertilizer Friday each week admiring not only what she's got blooming, but to check out the other gorgeous gardens.  Did I mention I'm in love with her greenhouse?  While I don't have much blooming other than what I posted earlier, I thought I'd share a few others from recent months that I might not have posted. 

First off is the second round of blooms for my Donkey Ears.  She seems to be enjoying her winter spot on the fireplace and is showing the love with another set of blooms getting ready to turn down.

Another picture of 'Chandelier Plant' blooms...I just love them!

My little 'Tiger Jaw' blooming back in October.

Last, but not least...one of my favorite Bougainvilleas that I added to the collection this past summer!

Looking forward to warmer days...

The Help - Kathryn Stockett

My neighbor friend bought The Help by Kathryn Stockett and after reading it passed it along to share.  It's been on my bookcase for several months waiting to be opened.  I'll admit that the size of it scared me a bit, it's been a while since I've read a fat hardback and I wasn't too sure about it.  After feeling a bit of guilt for not getting to it yet, I picked it up one day last week.  I could not put it down, or at least I did not want to put it down! I've spent more time at home than usual with an under the weather child, so I was able to get more reading time than normal in.  Last night I came to the last page and was quite frankly a little sad.

The Help was about three ordinary ladies who lived in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960's.  Skeeter, a 22 year old white lady who had recently come home from graduating college.  Skeeter comes home to find that her beloved maid, Constantine, is no longer there and no one will tell her where she's gone.  Much to her mother's dismay, she was more interested in her typewriter than in finding a man.  Abiline is a black maid who is currently raising her seventeenth white child.  After loosing her only son a few years before, she's different.  She loves her little white girl even though she knows that both could end up with a broken heart.  Her best friend, Minnie is known about town as the sassiest maid in the area.  She's also the best cook in the town and that always was her saving grace, until she made the wrong woman mad that is.  These three women are as different as different can be, but something pulls them together in a way none of them would have ever imagined.  They set aside their own fears of very real consequences to prove that some lines are just meant to be crossed. 

I have always enjoyed reading books around this time period, and this one read like a classic.  I find it incomprehensible that people could behave and treat other people the way they did and yet it was actually  condoned.  I fell in love with all three of these ladies and their stories.  Brave doesn't begin to cover what these ladies were willing to chance to do something they believed in.  My only two complaints about the book were, one the use of God's name unnecessarily and two that it ended so abruptly.  I guess only the first complaint is legit; who ever wants to see a good story end!  If you have not picked this one up yet, I encourage you to do so.  

Now I'm off to start the first book in A Flower Shop Mystery by Kate Collins.  I've been looking forward to this series, but didn't want to start it until I had at least the first several on hand.   There are still two that I need, but they're in the middle of the 9 or 10 book series, so I'm good!   I also can't think of a better way to start my weekend than with a book and Dr. Pepper...happy reading to me!

Greenhouse Happenings

It's incredibly cold outside, the temperature didn't get above 40 today and for this warm weather loving Texan, that's about 40 degrees to cold!  I've been keeping, or rather trying to keep my succulents warm in the little greenhouse.  The little heater's been running through the night and some days to keep them warm.  When I went out the other day, I was delighted to find that several of them are blooming.  I'm not sure exactly what this first one is, but the blooms on this gem are a gorgeous deep pink. I think it's a Pachy-something, but whatever it is, it's one of my favorites.  Last year, she bloomed in February...it must be the greenhouse!

This next one has always been high on my list because it's so weird looking.  I found it labeled as a 'Maternity Plant' at Walmart only to find that it's a 'Chandelier Plant' Kalanchoe Tubiflora.  At one point, it was like a little bush...

 ...and then got kind of leggy

Shortly after this picture, I cut her back and started another couple of pots.  She doesn't look good at all right now, but decided to bloom anyways.

And what lovely orange blooms they are! 

As for the rest of the succulents...between the greenhouse, the laundry room and the garage, they're still holding their own and looking quite nice considering the weather.

That's it for today, I just needed some color and thought I'd share with you as well!

A Few Good Books

While I haven't posted about any books in a while, I have been reading.  That being said, this could be a little long...consider yourself warned.  To start, I read to Cozy Christian Mysteries by Lori Copeland.  A Case of Bad Taste and  A Case of Crooked Letters, the first two books of her Morning Shade Mystery series were both enjoyable reads.  It's an older series, the first book was published in 2003.  Maude Diamond is a struggling writer intent on publishing a book that makes it to the best seller list at least once in her writing career.  After her husband passes away unexpectedly, her mother-in-law, Stella moves in with her; not long after that, her daughter who's husband also passed away unexpectedly follows suite.  In A Case of Bad Taste, homes in the small community mysteriously are being broken into, but instead of stealing anything, the burglar organizes and makes over various rooms.  Stella, who's in her 80's, I think, takes it upon herself to help in solving the mystery.  In A Case of Crooked Letters, it seems like a number of people in the community decide independently that the answer to their money problems is the pyramid letter scheme.  This one was funnier than the first one, probably because I already knew their personalities and could picture their antics in my mind.  Namely Stella, that lady is a hoot!  I'm looking forward to reading the third one that a friend is bringing me to read next. 

I'm trying to warm up to my Kindle, so I thought I'd read a normal book and then an electronic book.  It's working out that I'm reading two and then bringing out my Kindle, but I am getting more comfortable with it.  In fact, I read the next one really quickly; it didn't hurt that it was only 160 pages either! 

Unwrapping Christmas was also by Lori Copeland...I think December was her month.  I'm glad I read this one when I did.  Rose is an overachiever and determined to have the perfect Christmas in addition to everything else that she does in a day.  It didn't take long to figure out that she's the woman that never says 'no' to anyone and really believes that she's doing the right thing by doing everything for everyone.  She's the one that everyone thinks has it all together, but in fact is unraveling at the seams and doesn't even know it.  It wasn't until she was unexpectedly stopped rather quickly and unable to do anything that she realized just how much she wasn't making a difference.  Unwrapping Christmas was a charming, whimsical story reminding me of the real importance of the season and to be honest with myself about what I'm actually capable of.  Did you know that kids actually do get tired of pizza?! 

The most recent one, I finished today and it was one I was most looking forward to.  Chapter & Hearse by Lorna Barrett is the fourth book in her Booktown Mystery series.  Loved it!!  As usual, the Tricia found herself playing Nancy Drew trying to figure out who murdered one of the booksellers who's shop was across the street from hers.  Looking forward to the next one.  She also has another series under the name Lorraine Bartlett called Victoria Square Mysteries; the first one A Crafty Killing is coming out next month. 

Happy Reading!

Mandy

One Smart Corgi, One Trained Owner

After being introduced to a Welsh Corgi years ago, I knew that I needed to have one.  When our girls were 4 and 1, I found Corgi/Sheltie mix.

Bob, who was out of town at the time had kept promising me that we'd get a dog since we'd been in the house a few years, but he also kept putting me off.  One day at work, I was on the Animal Defense League and there she was! I went at lunch and much to my surprise, Goldie was completely shaven!  Evidently, her elderly owner had passed away and no one took care of her thick head of hair.  They assured me it'd grow back, so I brought the girls back after work to see what they thought.  They fell in love with her as quickly as I did.  Without calling Bob, I brought her home.  She hid behind the couch and we left to go buy food and other items one needs when they've never had a dog before.  I did call him then, "Honey, when you get home don't be alarmed.  there's a dog behind the couch."  I'm sure he growled, but he knew he'd also been avoiding the inevitable. 

Fast forward 10 years and she's a little older, 14 to be exact, but just as smart.  Since we got the guinea pigs a year ago, her herding skills have been sharpened.  Snowflake has an annoying habit of chewing on the cage and making a ridiculous amount of rattling noise when she wants food, attention or is just bored.  I'm guessing it bugs Goldie because once the wild ruckus begins, she'll come and get my attention (loudly sometimes) and take me into the other room to shut them up.  In the last few weeks though, she's picked up an annoying little habit herself.   At any given time, she'll decide she needs a treat.  First she'll just give me the eye and if I ignore her, which I always try first, she'll start barking at me.  Once I'm up, she'll lead me to the kitchen cabinet and stop.  I comply like a good human and give her the treats and she's content again. 


Goldie in her "summer cut" waiting for a treat



Guinea-sitting the Guinea Girls

Favorite past time, sunning herself

Easily Entertained

One of the gifts we got the girls this year was the Just Dance 2 game for the Wii.  I've watched both of them jump around, sadly the little one has about as much talent has her mother, but the big one on the other hand has a bit of rhythm.  Anyways, it was while watching the big one tonight that I felt energized to try it out myself.  Who cares that I'm wearing blue pajamas with pink cats and shoes all over them; they added to the loonish look of me trying to dance! I think I made it through 5 songs, each time saying I was done.  The Bollywood belly dance one was especially fun; I think I ranked near perfect on that one!!  The girls laughed and I stepped on the dog causing her to flee the room rather quickly.   That was on song four though, I missed her on all the others...that should count for something.  It was a workout, and I was rather proud of myself when I was done.  Next time I'm going to try the Proud Mary song as I've heard it's a sweat inducer; hopefully I'll have the sense to turn the heater off first. 

I can't believe that it's past my bedtime and I haven't cracked opened a book yet.  Not a good way to start a new year!  I wish I could say that I'd made great progress cleaning out today, but no...I did watch several episodes of Pitbulls and Parolees with the little one though.  She's obsessed with anything animal control or cops, and fortunately for us there was a marathon on today! 

I'm rethinking my goal of reading through the Bible again this year.  As I've thought back on it today, while I'm almost done, I really just read.  I think I'll set aside that goal and instead focus on quality reading and maybe some different Bible studies.  Maybe I'll make the read-through goal and every other yearer.  I don't exactly know, but I'm sure I'll figure it out. 

Happy New Year!
Mandy