EMPTY PALETTE

After the painting was done, I went to work furnishing and decorating "my space".  My intent for the room was a place I could go to put my feet up, kick back and read, or get creative with crafts and sewing projects.  This was a low-budget project and I "repurposed" things I already had around.  It was surprising how much fun it was being creative and finding new uses for things.

My work station consists of a fold-up table sitting on two utility cabinets.  I turned our old TV armoire into a storage cabinet which now neatly stores my fabric, crafts, books, etc.  I can just close the doors and voila' everything is out of sight!  A local auction yielded my only big purchase, a used chair and ottoman that is perfect for my needs!

THE FINISHED PROJECT:

This project was done on a shoestring budget and with only 2 purchases:  paint and the chair.  This was what I envisioned, but you will have your own inspirations.

You probably can't go outside anyway, right?    Make It Happen and let me know how your project is going!

A NEW SPACE

What color do I want?  As I looked around my daughter's old bedroom, I tried to imagine a space of my own where I could go to be creative, read, or just have a change of scenery.  I started to think "Woman Cave" (without the belching, of course).    Even though I'm not a good painter, I decided to take action.

Before

I knew I wanted a "dusty plum" and vanilla colors, so a trip to the home improvement store was in order.  All I had to do was ask my husband if he wanted to go and he had the pickup moving before I could get in.

As I looked at paint samples, I saw a postcard size flyer that read "Top 10 Empty Nest Colors".   I flipped it over, and lo and behold, my "dusty plum" color was there.  The vanilla was on there, too.  Wow!  Are we empty nesters that predictable?  If so, I can't wait for the "Top 10 Republican Party Member Colors" and "Top 10 Discovery Channel Viewer Colors" to come out!

After we got home, I got the needed supplies together; trim paintbrush, roller, tray and dropcloth.  And then, as I dipped the paint brush down into the Empty Nest Color I was apparently destined to have, the heavens parted and my husband said those 3 little beautiful words I secretly hoped for....... "Let Me Help".

More loving words have never been spoken.  Now, I could have insisted on doing it myself, but I gladly gave him my brush.  In the back of my mind, I remembered an old saying that goes,  You Can Teach a Man To Fish, but Tell A Man His Wife is Painting ...... (or something like that)

Til next time,

After

HOT CHOCOLATE AND COZY EVENINGS

60 More Days Til Spring, Ladies!


Winter blasts have been hitting all across the country and I hope all of you are safe, healthy and able to actually enjoy (at least a little bit) some of the seasonal beauty.

Spring starts March 20 this year, and I love to watch my tulips and hyacinths start poking their heads out of the ground.  But in the meantime, what to do, what to do?

Sometimes I question my sanity as to why I live in the snowbelt.  My husband could just as easily been from someplace with a beach, right?  But this year I will "go with the flow". No sense fighting something you can't change anyway.  This is the perfect time for snuggling, mall walking, and having great conversations with your kids. I am also going to suggest you do something really radical -- THROW A SNOWBALL AT SOMEONE (like your significant other).  It will make you giggle, and more than likely start the GREAT SNOWBALL CONFLICT of 2012.

Here are a few things I have on my own "Cabin Fever Cure" List (in no particular order):

 1.  Hot Chocolate with Marshmallows
 2.  Playing "competitive" games of Scrabble and Euchere
 3.  Organizing/labeling all those photos I've had developed at WalMart
 4.  Doing something nice for someone else
 5.  Taking a long bubble bath
 6.  Reading that book you haven't had time to start - my Mom gave me The Help
 7.  Paint that extra bedroom you now have and make it your own space
 8.  Exercise
 9.  Try some new recipes or create your own nutritious "comfort food"
10. Explore a new hobby -- I am learning to sew and finding it really fun!
11. Call your girlfriends and have a night "in"
12. Write a Blog! (Hello?  Is anyone reading this?)

Let me know how you are beating the Winter Blues!  We're all in the same sled.

Til next time

NOW WHAT?

You raised your children to have wings and now they have left the nest.  What nerve!  But actually,  what your child is doing is very brave.   It's a different world out there than when my husband and I were dating, going to school, and finding jobs.  They are moving into the next, exciting chapter of their own adventure book called LIFE.  But guess what?  You are too!

This is no great mystery, but when it actually happens to you, it is life altering.  When my kids each entered high school, I knew the countdown had already begun.  What I wouldn't give to change another dirty diaper, wipe snot, or clean dinner off the floor.  The tears were already coming when we were just visiting college campuses.  Then Marriage?  I'll spare you those details for now -- I'm out of Kleenex.  Anyway, too soon the house was empty.....

One thing I do want you to realize though, is -- it is OK to mourn for awhile! You just ended an 18-year "chapter" of your own adventure book.  My husband and I both went through a mourning period;  it was therapeutic.  During this time, we laughed, cried, and shared some fantastic memories and hopes for the future.  We decided we did a pretty darn good job raising our children after all.  We tried to remember what it was like B.C. (before children).  It was time to be a couple again.  


Then came the epiphany and I thought I was EINSTEIN (with auburn highlights)!  We had survived.  Plain and Simple.  You will too. You are still writing your own story together;  I want to encourage you to communicate and reconnect with your spouse. You'll be glad you did!

My husband and I still have a lot of chapters to experience in this book called "The Great Unknown".  I just hope it's not based on a Stephen King Novel......


Til next time!

THE EMPTY NESTERS SOCIETY

I am a member of the Empty Nesters Society.  I didn't even want to join this club -- but the club inducted me anyway. 

Both my children have left home -- one went to college and later got married, and the other is currently in college.  As I am adjusting to this new chapter of my life, though, I've realized that:

- I have a lot more free time
- I still don't have any extra money
- I have a lot less laundry
- I now have 2 extra bedrooms
- I am no longer the "Mom Taxi"
- I can now fix a salad (or even broccoli) for dinner
- I am not a sissy

I guess I'm what you might call a "tweener" -- I feel 18 in my head, but my body says "get in the real world!". Too young for retirement, but still getting those AARP invitations in the mail. And, skinny cashiers asking if I want the senior citizen discount.  (sometimes I say "yes" just for the heck of it!)

If:

- you watched the First Man on the Moon Neil Armstrong on a black and white TV
- you couldn't decide if you would marry Bobby Sherman or David Cassidy
- you realized Edith Bunker was pretty deep sometimes

then hopefully my rants and raves might bring a smile, a tear, or a special memory your way.

WE BELONG TO A SPECIAL GROUP.   Embrace your membership. 

Til next time!