Planting Time

I have always said there is wee bit of farmer in me. Actually, I couldn't cut it as a farmer if the truth be told, but I do love to grow things. There is something special about putting your hands in the earth and then watching patiently for the growth to take place.

This past weekend, Hubby and I tackled more outdoor projects.  We had previously put out fresh pine straw in the flower beds around the house.

This weekend we added some flowers and planted some tomatoes and peppers in containers.

We loaded up the buggy at Lowe's.

We are in the process of getting a new upper deck on the back of our house. It is long overdue (more of those endless repairs), so I have everything on the lower deck down by the water, so everything is temporarily kind of pushed together. Once they get growing and we spread them out over the back, they don't look so bad.

Three pots of onions.

Tomatoes and some basil.

Peppers. There is nothing like fresh salsa. Hubby makes great salsa.

More tomatoes.

And even more tomatoes. I think we have 6 pots total of tomatoes.

I changed out the pots on the front porch. It is kind of cloudy this morning, so not the greatest pictures.

We added some impatiens and ferns in hanging baskets out front.

After seeing the photo, I am thinking I need to lower those ferns. 

The leaves on the live oaks are beginning to fall. I love the live oaks, but it is unbelievable the load of leaves they drop in the spring.

The impatiens will keep some color as the azaleas fade away.

The azaleas are beginning to bloom. LOVE THEM!!!

Can't wait to get geraniums and begonias back in there spot on the upper deck. Those are two of my favorite things to look out at. Patience. It will be through soon.

I have two showers (a baby and a bridal) to give in April, so I am hoping everything will be popping out and looking a little better by then. 

Until next time,

Sandy

One Year

Today is the one year anniversary of this blog. 

I started the blog as I was closing in on the last few months of my career as a public school teacher.  I had taken on a job the last three years that was really a fantastic way to go out. Our school district had been awarded a grant to open science labs in 5 elementary schools.  I oversaw this grant's implementation. It was a big job with many responsiblilites, but I loved it. It was a win-win for me as the job's end would coincide with my planned retirement date.

I must say I was ready to retire, but scared at the same time. 

http://palmerspathfinders.blogspot.com/2013/01/temperature-lesson-for-kindergarten.html

I was so tired to begin with; that for the summer I just had to let myself rest. I went to the beach, looked at my messes, and spent time just thinking and reflecting.

When school started back, I began to feel alive again and began the process of putting my home back in order.

I have learned quite a few things since my June retirement.

One of the things I learned is that saying, "Rome was built in a day," applied with putting my home back together. After a rough year of being away from home more than I was there left me with dust bunnies in every corner and under every piece of furniture. The last few years of teaching had really worn me down physically with my Rheumatoid Arthritis. I had let so many things go. I had to make a list and just do a little each day. I am beginning to see progress, but it was hard at first. I am physically doing better due in part to less stress! I still have many more areas to go in the home and we have so many things that need repaired, but slow and steady is going to win this race.

I am understanding that routines are important just like in my job. I am working hard to get those in place. I know a clean home makes everyone feel better and less stress for me. I get bent out of shape by the messiness. I have also worked on not comparing myself or my home to anyone else. There will always be something to want, so learning to be content is on my top priority. Just being satisfied to be home for a season and taking care of the family.

I am learning to enjoy my hobbies that were put on a back shelf for many years and so grateful for the time to do them.

I am doing quite a bit of sewing.

I am loving that I have set goals for my quiet time with the Lord and that I have time to actually sit and dig deeper, drink a cup of coffee, and pray for an extended period of time.

I am learning to sit on my porch and relax, even though time is ticking. I rushed for so many years and had so much school work to do that I found it very hard to ever turn the job off.

Sitting and enjoying the ducks swimming by.

I have so much more to learn and do.

Another thing I have discovered is about blogging. I love reading them. I am not sure why, but I find it so very interesting to read what others are doing. I don't know if it validates that I am normal or what. I have discovered that I probably like reading them more than writing one. I will NEVER be a regular blogger. I don't want to feel stressed to write a post on a certain day every week, so there will be randomness to my posts. I have also discovered that the blogs that I really enjoy reading are hard to find. They are not necessarily the ones that link up, but often I just find them on the list of blogs that others follow. I like real life. Yes, I love decorating and looking at pretty things, but I am drawn to those that just share those random things of life.

I like to blog (when I feel like it) and this blog will be my happy thoughts. All of life is not happy thoughts though. Real life is really a series of ups and downs. I have the real life moments just like anyone else. I write all of those  in a paper journal.

I really like to write and find it can be very therapeutic when you need to unload those feelings. I love a fresh notepad or notebook like you wouldn't believe. I will continue to write in my paper journal for when I really need to pour my heart out.

So, for now, I will post my things that I don't mind sharing publicly on a very irregular basis. I like looking back on the online journal at those entries. If anyone cares to read that will be fine too.

I will be back next week. I have been busy with doctors' appointments with my mom, and other stuff too. Those things that got journaled via paper and pencil if you know what I mean.

Enjoying this season of life,

Sandy

Master Bedroom and Bath

I am sharing my master bedroom and bath today. It is a room that I enjoy going to at the end of the day and honestly during the day.

 I truly need a chaise lounge to go in this window. Maybe one day.

I am a terrible picture taker especially when there is light involved. It is a cloudy day, so I thought I might have half a chance. There is a lot of light coming through these windows on most days. The printer is here because I used to have a desk on the right when I was still teaching. It was my little work at home corner and used to get quite messy. (Don't miss that a bit.) We got rid of the desk after I retired, but I really had no place for the printer, so it stayed here.

I love plants!!!

The desk was here where the armoire is now, hence, the diplomas are still here too. I loved the new storage instead of the desk.

These pictures belonged to Hubby's parents. I left them right where they were when we moved in. Hubby says they hung in his parents' bedroom as far back as he can remember.

An interesting note about the window area... my mother-in-law drew the plans for this house. There are three of those areas across the back of the house upstairs and downstairs. Each one is progressively farther out than the other, so that you can a full view of the bayou from each room. IT is my favorite thing about the house.

Moving in from the window area, is the main part of the bedroom. 

We purchased our bedroom suit 30 years ago when we first married. We were sure we would never get it paid off. I have loved it from the get go. The original bedroom suit came with a queen bed. When we purchased our cabin near Auburn, we took the bed to the cabin. We were sure we would be able to purchase a king just like it. That was not to be the case. I settled for a sleigh bed for years. We recently found a place in Pensacola that could order the bed for us. I am beyond excited about the new bed. It is so me, and looks much better in this room than the sleigh bed.

Little Hallie, my grand dog is sleeping at the foot of the bed. I dog sit for her during the day. Long story:) She is a sweetie.

The little bookcase is very SPECIAL to me. My dad made it in shop class when he was in high school. It was in my grandmother's house for many years. When she passed away, I grabbed it. I have filled it with special things to me. My mother's little jewelry box is on the bottom shelf.

I say, "BRING BACK SHOP AND HOME ECONOMICS!"

Above the bookcase is a special Auburn program that Hubby framed for me as a present.

It is the program from the football game, where later that evening we had our first kiss.

Leaving the main area you go right for the master bath or left to go out. On the walls going out to the living room, I have a gallery wall of my children through the years.

Now, for the master bath.

I am going to be honest with you...

I took nothing off the counters. What you see is real life.

Trays hold our toiletries. 

Easy to pick up and clean. 

Basket of laundry instead of a cute chair.

AND yes, the door is off the cabinet. We recently painted the cabinets white. They were a cream color and just needed a redo. The hardware didn't work on that cabinet at the time and Hubby just hasn't put it back on.

Opposite the vanity is our closet with glass doors. I wasn't a fan of all the gold, but I love the mirrors. 

I think the gold is coming back in style. Sometimes you just gotta wait things out.

The bath is beyond the vanity.

The white tile on the floor is not my favorite, but it will be a long time before it is replaced. There are many more projects on the list. It might be something that comes back in style by that time.

The bathroom has a skylight and gets plenty of light, so I am trying to revive a puny little plant in the corner.

When we moved in back in 2002, almost every room in this house had very BUSY wallpaper. I scraped until I thought I would die. I don't care how much wallpaper comes back in style or how easy they say it is to take off....there will never be wallpaper in a house I own - EVER AGAIN.

I love the bones of our home. It contains many things I would not have picked out, but over time have grown on me. We talked about selling and moving to a smaller place recently and both children DID NOT like that idea. After all, it is a family home. My husband's parents built it in 1984 as their dream retirement home. They enjoyed it immensely, but they didn't get to enjoy it nearly enough. We moved in as the kids were in middle school, and they enjoyed living on the water.

I think we have decided it is home for the foreseeable future, so now, it is time to get all those needed repairs done. 

Hope you enjoyed the tour of our master bedroom and bath.

Blessings to you,

Sandy

Linking up with 

Dwellings-The Heart of Your Home

http://www.dwellings-theheartofyourhome.com/2015/03/amaze-me-monday-101.html

and
Coastal Charm
http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/2015/03/show-and-share-no252.html

and
Karen's Up on the Hill
http://www.karensuponthehill.com/something-to-talk-about-link-party-7/

Bring on Spring

The sun was a welcome sight today.
I stayed outside almost all day doing yard work.

There is so much to do, and far more than a day's work. Hubby and I put a thick layer of pine straw down in all the front beds.

This bed runs down the side entrance into our cul-de-sac. Pete the Pelcan and Buck the Deer welcome visitors. The azaleas and hydrangeas are budding. I can't wait to see Pride of Mobile azaleas in full bloom. They make me happy, happy, happy!

I pruned the roses in the front of our home in mid February. I always try to set Valentine's Day as my date to do it.

I redid my rose area last spring. The older more established ones are putting out leaves. My newer ones are growing a little slower. 

I love roses!!! Might be a little obsessed and really don't have the best yard for them.

I added some new bows to the front porch swans.

The front porch so needs pressure washing. There are doves in the tiles and you can't even see them for the dirt and rust. 

I so desperately wanted to put new flowers in the pots. The pansies and violas are pitiful looking, but I thought I might better wait a little longer. Don't want to put the cart before the horse.

However, I did buy my red geraniums. I love red geraniums almost, if not more, than my roses. They don't last long at Lowe's. You can get white or pink later, but not red. They sell quickly. I bought these last week. I was such a dummy and let all of mine get killed by the cold this winter.

  I almost cried I tell you!!!

We are getting a new back deck where I keep them, so they have been sitting in my kitchen trying to soak up as much sun from my kitchen as possible.

I have a dozen plants started. They really are a pop of color on my back deck. I have a row of them that I keep just outside the window under the kitchen sink.

My third favorite flower is my angel wing begonias. I will have to share them sometime. 

I LOVE to grow things!!!!!!!!!!

My hubby surprised me with a bicycle basket today. I have wanted one for awhile.

Upon closer inspection, it is a handmade basket. All the more reason to LOVE!

And a good cause. Hubby is the best gift giver ever!!!

Can't wait to try it out.

By the way, he just made supper. Blackened fish and boiled shrimp. He is a keeper.

Thankful for a beautiful day. 

I felt I needed to enjoy it as much as I could as it is supposed to start raining tomorrow and be a rainy WEEK.

Blessed for sure,

Sandy