Wordy Wednesday

 

Sorry for the crooked picture. It somehow fits though. I literally tripped in my kitchen and fell backwards over my dog hitting my head on the door frame. I was working on dinner, and you know how dogs just got to be in the way. I now have 5 staples and a tetanus shot. EMS responded and while I didn't ride in the ambulance. I did visit for the first time the ER in my new town. Luckily my husband was home because it was dinner time. He was very take charge and called 911. There was a lot of blood because it was a head wound. I don't do blood, so it was a good thing it was the back of my head.  I guess my mom was right I have a hard head.

Dumpster Sunflower

 Our new house has an alley, and we share a dumpster with several neighbors. There has been a sunflower growing next to the dumpster. It finally bloomed. My husband captured the photo above. I have been missing having a cut flower garden. Kind of gives new meaning to grow where you are planted. Dumpster flowers are way better than dumpster fires.

House to Home - Small Kitchen Making It Work

 

Well, I have moved to a house with a small kitchen with far less storage.  

It has a very small portable dishwasher.  It looks like they chopped off a cupboard so they could have space for this tiny portable dishwasher. The cabinets being original aren't high enough for permanently installed dishwasher There is a lot of hand washing going on. We don't really have space for a full-time dishrack so got a dish rack pad thing. Which you can fold up when not in use.

Upper cabinets are low to counters so really hard for the paper towel holder to fit underneath

We added some wire shelving to house our appliances and makeshift pantry. The former metal bins from our previous pantry help make it look slightly more organized. My husband hung my under the counter radio on the shelving to free up some more counter space and under counter space. I really like having a radio in the kitchen this one also will Bluetooth too. 

We also added a folding table for more counterspace and really to hold our coffee maker. It is the most important appliance in our kitchen.

We purchased a 15-inch unfinished cabinet to put in-between the stove and refrigerator. Nothing worse than not having a place to put your spatula down but somehow this hasn't made it to the kitchen yet. Currently being used in guest room as a nightstand. 

For what we plan to do in this space check out this post. Our plans keep evolving a bit but it the general idea what we hope to do. Add to the list new blinds and new rug.  

Weekly Roll

 

Linky Love

School Supplies for Grown-ups - I love me some school supplies

Bulk Baking - Zucchini Bread - This is my go-to during zucchini season. Jessica is onto something. These freeze up great. I love pulling out a loaf in the middle of winter. 

Coleslaw with Dried Cranberries and Pecans - Also one of Jessica's Recipes. My crew gobbled this up

Deep Thoughts

I have been thinking a lot about the messy middle. I feel like I am in the messy middle. That perfectly describes my relocation. Yard was a dust bowl now a trenched and a mud pit. Hey but there a few sprinkler heads. I told my husband I am the Queen of the Silver Linings. 

50 Sun Project - 37/50 Sunset

 

This sunrise photo was taken from the window seat of an airplane. I was flying from El Paso, TX to Seattle, WA . Taken on August 6th

Wordy Wednesday

 Sometimes I swear I need to be abducted.  Inspired by the meme on All Over the Spectrum (Facebook)

"Being abducted by aliens might just be the vacation I need at this point."

Weekly Roll

Well, I helped in a move last week that also involved a multi-state road trip hello WA, OR, ID, WY, CO, and NM. 

Linky Love

How to Take a Book Vacation - sign me up!

From Autistic Linear Spectrum to Pie Chart Spectrum - I like this explanation of autism and the visual is helpful

Inappropriate Thoughts

I got road trip questions.  I need to know what is growing over there that I can't identify from the road. There needs to be SIGNS. Am I right?  I need to know how long truck drivers can drive before pulling over.  I need to know what that building is.  Why are they building a mental health facility next to the city dump. I SERIOUSLY HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS. My mother-in-law said we need to have a book of questions. I think we need to have a lonely road podcast.  

Sunset Photo by my Husband aka The Giant Man Child on August 15th. 

Deep Thoughts

Can you imagine responding to a car wreck every day. However, you have no training, and no one ever comes to assist you. Sometimes I feel that is what is caregiving is. 

I have spent enormous amount of time trying to set up services for adult son in New Mexico. It reminds me a lot of the beginning of his journey with Autism. However, this time I know what I am dealing with, and I know what needs to be done. I am also aware of my limits, and I had to say "no" this week to a service that my son had in the past. I saw that it was going to exceed my bandwidth and it didn't improve my son's care in quality. Maybe I can learn. 

In my son's early years, I would literally get called to school so often. I had PTSD when the school number flashed on my caller ID.  The thing is when I arrived at the scene of the incident. I was the most under qualified person to respond with the least information about the incident.  I was always held accountable for someone else's behavior which I didn't really understand at the time nor was I the cause of the behavior. It was a scene that repeated over and over. The harder I tried to modify someone behavior the worst the behavior became. I was called to the principal's office so many times.  I know now I am not responsible for other people's bad behavior and nor will I assume the responsibility. Sometimes I fall back into bad habits, and I was reminded of that this week.

50 Sun Project - 36/50

 August 3rd sunrise - This was also my oldest son's birthday.  The sky was so red.

Wordy Wednesday

 

I like to doodle. This is one I made on the plane over a week ago. Lately all the roads have been difficult and sometimes I feel like the road is never going to arrive at a beautiful destination. However, I have been on difficult roads before blocked and under construction I know I will arrive. I have confidence in my ability to make it. (Maybe a slight over confidence) I tend to find that the harder the road the sweeter the destination.

What I Read August

 I am linking up with Modern Mrs Darcy Quick Lit. Check out what everyone else is reading. My reading life has picked up.

Magnolia Palace by Fiona Davis

I literally read this in one day.  I haven't done that in ages. A story set at the Frick Mansion and about the Frick Family and an artist model named Angelica. 

Fiona Davis, New York Times best-selling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue, returns with a tantalizing novel about the secrets, betrayal, and murder within one of New York City's most impressive Gilded Age mansions - Amazon

More information about the real-life art collection - Frick Collection

The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

This was another fast read. I loved how twisty this story is. 

Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke and alone, and she’s just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half brother, Ben, didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only when she shows up—to find a very nice apartment, could Ben really have afforded this?—he’s not there.

The longer Ben stays missing, the more Jess starts to dig into her brother’s situation, and the more questions she has. Ben’s neighbors are an eclectic bunch and not particularly friendly. Jess may have come to Paris to escape her past, but it’s starting to look like it’s Ben’s future that’s in question.

The socialite. The nice guy. The alcoholic. The girl on the verge. The concierge.

Everyone's a neighbor. Everyone's a suspect. And everyone knows something they’re not telling.- Amazon

Weekly Roll

I don't know why the TikTok above made me laugh. It is an oldie but a goodie.

Linky Love

George Jetson born in 2022 - I guess I am going to have to stop saying they promised us personal spaceships and robot housecleaners in 2022 when the Jetson's was set in 2062. 

Inappropriate Thoughts

I literally had ants in my pants a couple Mondays ago. Words that I thought I would never speak. How the heck does that happen. Insects in New Mexico be hating on me.

Deep Thoughts

House to Home - Guest Room Open for Business

Well the guest room is also the laundry as well.  It also has been the catchall for all the boxes we hadn't cleaned out. Picture above is from the first of July. However, Nonna is coming for an extended visit, so it really needs to function as a guest room. So, we worked pretty hard to make it functional.  It isn't pretty but it should sleep pretty well.

I especially like our redneck sheet cover for our wire rack bookshelf. It is just a sheet wrapped around and clipped with binder clips.

OUR GUEST ROOM IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

House to Home - Kitchen Paint Risk

I am waffling on taking a risk in our new to us kitchen. It has the original dark faux wood paneling. It is small and has a lot of wasted space. We will probably remodel but not right now, so I am deciding whether to take a color risk. I would like to paint the paneling green. Yes, green and the built in a darker green. I have a large yellow Madrid Depression glass collection and the red and yellow make it look like ketchup and mustard. The inside of the built in will be white. Hopefully this will make the yellow glass stand out.

I tried out a few green colors. Below is my inspiration. I found a tea towel at tractor supply, and this sums up my design for the kitchen

Paint is Sherwin Williams Nurture Green and Inland

Playing around with some of my glassware in the niche. I do have a little bit of the green newer copy of madrid  glassware.