A rainy Friday and I still have a smile on my face!!

Yes I do have a smile, because it's the start to my 4 days at home. Other than melting some glass when I get done posting this, painting, and sewing I don't have anything on my list of things to do!!! I should have been born a hermit, because I could crawl into my house and never go out other than to see my kids and grandkids and be perfectly happy. Of course the split side of my personality,(yah I know I must have one, I fight it all the time) says I would love to travel, but that cost $$$, so I am not worried about that happening anytime soon!

So, what are you going to plant this year? I am working on that in my head, I have lot's of splitting and transplanting to get accomplished. The weather is starting to cooperate, so that will have to be on my list soon! Other than tending to the garden and landscaping I have to put my flag pole and grape arbor at the top of my list of things. I bought a beautiful new Marine Corp Flag to fly under my U.S. Flag. I checked out the official how to fly them together, so hubby lets get that flag pole in the ground!!!

The sewing is really relaxing and now that I have the space it is something that calls me upstairs to enjoy the process. I think I will attack a larger purse with more structure and see how that works out. Then I think actual quilts will be on my list of things to make!

But first down to the glass studio and start melting glass regularly again. I have taken a break since I came back from CA in February. The dust has settled and I need to clean up my space and get back to work. I have to many wants on my list for the house and to do that I need to make the extra $$ that my beads bring into the house! This year I want a wood patio out back for relaxing on! Then start collecting the materials to build a greenhouse either this fall or next spring. I have an inspiration for it that I found over a year ago. This one is in Ontario and made out of completey salvaged materials other than a new automatic roof vent. It is also fitting for our climate and I just love it!


So off to work I go, expect to see a FB page for my Glass Goodies soon! Hubby is even going to give some time to melting glass again. He misses it and Ebay has been so stressful lately. To many idiots out there to deal with! LOL

Have a great day everyone and pass some Huggies around when you can!

Dilly

A new week and more on my calendar!!!

Yup it's Monday and I am trying to make an effort as I promised. Our last day at home before hitting the Treasure Trails! Just so you all understand what hitting the Treasure Trails means. We have established several routes throughout Michigan over the past 12 years. They include thrift stores, Habitat for Humanity locations, Christian Resale stores, some second hand stores, hospice resale stores, etc. Hubby's business that I help with is finding things and reselling them on Ebay. He has been successful with this for close to 14 years. He was doing this before it was cool and a reality show on TV. Plus his percentage of profit beats the heck out of some of those stupid shows we have caught! You ask what does he sell, let's see at a local thrift store for $4.00 he found what I term a Quack Medical Device. You know one of those things that you really can't tell if it helps, it emits light and heat, etc. This one is FDA approved and it sold originally for $1,400.00 On Ebay it will sell for around $500. Right now I am using it on my shoulder and Yes, it is helping. He might have to wait for his profit portion on this one!! LOL So that is how we make a living for the most part, I help him search for the items, from a wave machine from the 70's, a cast iron green peeper shaped casserole, etc. We use our cell phones for research using Ebay to see if the items are selling, and what they have sold for. It works and we do enjoy it! OK now you get a better picture of what we do.

Last night we had a house guest, our grandson Xavier stayed the night. I thought he was well on his way to falling asleep in the middle of Disneys "The Rescuers", but someone must have shot him some adrenaline because out of now were he was rocking and rolling again. Well until after 11:00 pm. still playing with his flashlight in the dark! Up again at around 7:00 a.m. OMG I am really getting old. We did have a great time and can't wait until his new cousin can do an overnight with him!! Of course we do have to wait or that little new cousin to be born and grow up a little before we can do that!!!!LOL


Speaking of the new little cousin, last weekend I traveled up to Shannon and Shawns house and the crew painted the nursery. Papa helped by keeping Xavier entertained when he was trying to help paint. But we left with two coats of paint and the room ready for trim by Papa Binkley! Won't be long and they kids can start setting up all the goodies that they have been collecting for the room. They don't need much more to be ready for the new little sweetie to move in with them!

So the kitchen is clean, Xavier has gone home, hubby is done packaging, and I need to get a few more things done around here! Like watch the DVD of Todd's Marine Corp Graduation that arrived in the mail! LOL Oh, and work on the family tree for the reunion next month. Oh, don't forget the painting upstairs, etc. It just never stops around here! Pass those huggies all around!

Dilly

I think Spring might be sneeking in!

Morning I thought I would check in before we are off and running today! Yah, it is starting to look like spring around here. Lot's of sunshine lately but chilly temps. Today is more like it, wet and rainy and grey skies....now that is Michigan Baby!!!! But that is how everything turns green around here. I just want warmer temps so I feel like going out and cleaning out the winter crap from the gardens and landscaping! Freezing my butkis off is not on my list of things to do!

Today I am headed up to Shannons to help paint the nursery. Last Wednesday we stripped the ucky kitty border down and taped the trim for painting. The for the last few days we have had discussion about paint colors! LOL Anywhere between mint chocolate chip, and orange sherbert! Since Shannon has almost all the necessary things to make the nursery stunning most of her work is almost done! It is a very nice memory to add to my mental book of things I love doing with my kids!


Speaking of kids I caught a great photo of my fur baby kids yesterday. Randy was setting on the settee in the sun room and now that Dozer is a big boy (same size as Kylee) they can both plop their butts on the furniture with their front paws on the floor. So the three of them are setting there staring out the window at the wildlife and what ever is going on at the neighbors behind us. Since Dozer is only 9 months old, only God knows how big he will get. Large breeds are full grown at about 18 months! LOL Hey he didn't get called Dozer because he was going to be small! LOL

Well I hope any who read this have a wonderful weekend. Pass the huggies around when you can!

Dilly

I do have good intentions!

I honestly mean to get on here and post a little more regular, but it's like the list of things just gets longer and my day gets shorter!

So many things going on or trying to get done. The upstairs is coming right along, I am ready to paint the hallway, hubby installed the new sconce so it's looking great. I cleaned out the back room, and have a wonderful sewing area. I have been sew and working on rag quilting. So far two different projects are done. Of course Dozer ate the first one! Maybe not the entire thing but the shoulder strap is bitten in 3 pieces for a small bag I made to hold my phone. When we are working on the road my phone is at my side constantly and used to research items we find. Pulling it in and out of my pocket is a PIA because it is a touch screen. So I figured a small little purse would work great! It did while it lasted!

Now I made a small purse that hold most things that I really need. It turned out great but it should have a little more structure to it. So a little larger and a lot more stiffer will be my next project. I also found the directions to make roman shades using a regular blind as it's structure, so I will give that a go and see how it looks. I need some window treatments around the house and I love roman shades not their prices.

Yesterday I got to work with Shannon on the babys room. We got the hideous kitten border down with the wonderful smell of Downy, taped all the trim, and picked out the paint colors. I will be going back on Saturday to help her paint the room. After her father in law puts up the chair rail, closet doors and some trim she will be able to unload the rest of her house of all the baby stuff and the room will be well on it's way to being ready for the new little one. She only needs a rocker and a changing table. She has everything!!!!! else. Bedding, curtains, hampers, toy box, little table an chairs. The room will be stunning when she is done!!

Todd is now in Missouri at Fort Leonard Wood, he actual training will start in a few weeks. Erin is headed down there this coming weekend with more of his goodies including his computer. Now we will be able to skype with him. The phone calls have been great since he got there and makes it much easier. I hope the two of them have a wonderful weekend!

Heather, Kirk and Xavier have been crusing the town in their new toy. I will have to get a picture of it. They were looking for a smaller car that got great gas mileage so the Durango could set in the driveway. The ended up getting a 1970 VW beatle. Xavier loves his Yellow Bug!!! Heather said he got up yesterday and looked out her bedroom window and said Hey my bug is down there! That ought to provide lots of entertainment this summer in addition to their trailer permanently at the lake!

Not quite warm enough to start the gardening yet, but spending time thinking about what I want to get accomplished and what to plant this year! With the highs only in the 40's lately I still have a couple of weeks, but I will have to start cleaning out the dead winter stuff!

I won't make any promises, but I will try to be here more regularly! Keep safe and pass the huggies around!

Dilly

Spring can't be far!!

The sun is shining and yes it's only 16 degrees out right now. But, it is suppose to hit close to the 40's most of this week! That means the frigging snow will be gone and I am tired of seeing that. I can deal with the cold temps, but I won't miss the snow and ice that seems to have been here forever. I would be whining a lot louder if I hadn't had my wonderful trip to California last month! LOL


We have been working on our bedroom, cleaning, dumping, unloading our dressers that we don't need anymore. I still will be looking for a new headboard, dust ruffle, work on finishing the window treatments, and some stuff for the walls and a cover for the Dog's trundle bed. Yes, you got that right, our room is large enough for a King Size bed and a trundle that is pulled out at night for the two Great Danes. I finally have them off my bed at night and everyone is much more comfortable! The photo above is before the clean out, the one below this is how it looks right now.


I just realized I never posted photos of our makeover of our laundry/walk in closet room. When we purchased the house we had 3 seperate apartments and actualy had a kitchen upstairs. We ripped that out, but it left us the water, gas etc. So our washer/dryer got installed upstairs. If you ever get a chance to have your laundry room on the same floor as your bedroom. OMG, DO IT!!! It makes your life so much better!!! We have one end of the room completed and have some plumbing for the adjacent bathroom to fix before we finish the end with the washer/dryer. But I have the paint, beadboard and new floor all ready waiting to get installed!


I still have loads of work to do before the weather breaks! The back bedroom is in need of sorting out, it will house a craft/sewing area, the treadmill and the two closets will be jammed packed with Todd's and our stuff. But with the sliding glass door in there it has beautiful light and lots of heat when the sun shines. So once everything gets organized in there and my art stuff get moved, I can finish up the guest room, paint the hallway, and maybe get the upstairs pretty much done other than carpeting and that will happen before next winter! Here is a shot of back bedroom so you get the gist of my workload! LOL

By that time I will be ready to move outside and keep working on all my landscapting projects. My first will to build a grape arbor, I was inspired by a high school buddy, install my flagpole, finsih with the front yard, and take on the back yard patio. Oh and keep the garden area up and going through all that! LOL No rest for us wicked people!!!

Have a wonderful week, huggies all around for everyone!
Dilly

Off and running again! My world is back to its regularly scheduled programming. Hitting the road 3 days in a row. Yesterday was Lansing, looks like today will be Holland. I know I am getting old because this is beating me up. Looks like when the temps get warmer and the ice and snow are gone I need to get out and start walking I am in bad shape compared to a couple of years ago!

Nothing major new around here, Xavier spent the night Saturday, Shannon and Shawn were down and we went out for Sunday Dinner with them. Our 4 days off coming up will be filled with painting, moving furniture and working on the house along with keeping the daily business stuff going packaging and all!



Talked to Todd on the phone all is well and he has all his fingers and toes after playing with grenades. He will call us again in 2 weeks, then only one more week at Pendleton and then he is off to Missouri! I believe 6 weeks there and then a permanent duty station! We will wait and see, that will be the time Erin will be joining him if she can!

Spring will eventually come, but I am sure it will turn on like and electric light bulb and probably melt us like summer. That's the way it's been happening the last few years, we go from freeze to bake with no defrosting in the middle! The seasons I enjoy the most Spring and Fall get left behind lately!

Enjoy yoursevles no matter what you are doing! Huggies all around for everyone!

Dilly

Wow has it really been that long since I have been on here???

Boy what a lazy bum I am. Of course I was out of the loop for over a week during my trip to California. But that is no excuse.....sorry!

I did make my trip to Ca to see our son, Todd graduate from Marine Bootcamp in San Diego. The trip was great and Heather, Xavier and I had beautiful weather during our 2 day train trip out to CA. Oh, I am being sarcastic!! We had snow whiteouts all the way to Albequrque!!
We jumped into a rental car in Los Angeles and drove down along the ocean to San Diego. BEAUTIFUL!!! As we waited for the keys to the house, the three of us walked out onto the Beach and Xavier got his first chance to put his toes in the Pacific. He loved the Beach and other than Uncle Todd I think it was one of the highlights of his trip. He would walk out onto the sand and the waves would chase him and he would squeal with delight! Then do it all over again!


My other daughter, Shannon, daughter-in-law, Erin and SIL Elaine flew in to San Diego together. My sister Michelle and her hubby Glenn came in from Maryland. Michelle and Glenn stayed at a nearby hotel, the rest of us rented a beautiful house 2 blocks from the beach and 2 blocks from Mission Bay. It was outstanding and very restul for our 4 night stay. That evening my cousin Steve Dillingham and his wife Vicki and children Alex and Alysa came over and it was wonderful seeing him and his family after too many years!

Of course Thursday morning we all rushed on base to get our first glimpse of Todd with his platton practicing for the Graduation Ceremonies on Friday. It was wonderful to see him, and even better later when he was released to us for the afternoon. We had a picnic off by ourselves where Todd had seen a table. That way his saluting and being harrassed were to minimum and we enjoyed spending time together. He ate like a man who had starved to death. Which of course was not the case, but those cookies and goodies looked darn good to him. We said goodbye early evening and couldn't wait to go back the next morning for his graduation!


The day again was outstanding and we attending the color ceremony, and piled into the stands awaiting the graduation ceremony. One of the highlights of the ceremony was of course seeing Todd in a fancier uniform, but the speaker told us the had one recruit out of the 466 who had served in the airforce and now was enlsted in the Marines and they were lucky to have one college graduate. Yup, thats our boy, the one college graduate out of 466! I am proud of him as always. We hugged and cried after the ceremony, but most importantly we grabbed his sea bags and got the heck out of there. Back at the house hamburgs and all the fixings for lunch followed by a walk down to the beach. That evening we were treated to the Pizza and Cheese Bread meal that Todd had requested by my Cousin Steve. Todd had a great time, said it was exactly what he had wanted and enjoyed meeting some cousins he didn't even know existed! We said goodbye to Glenn and Michelle they were flying out early Saturday morning.

Saturday we all packed up and headed to the San Diego Zoo. If you ever get the chance and you are up to the extreme ups and downs it is sooooo worth it. The botanical side of the zoo is worth the trip all by itself. Absolutely gorgeous! We took our exhausted butts home, made homemade meatloaf and crash and burned.


Sunday....Erin and Todd took Shannon to the airport, the rest of us packed and picked up the house. Then mid-morning we drove down to a beach about a mile away and walked around soaking up the Californai beauty before we said Good Bye to Erin and Todd. Heather, Elaine, Xavier and I drove up historic highway 101 along the beach oohing and aaaahing at the breathtaking views, beautiful houses, and cool stuff along the way. Around Camp Pendleton we got back on highway 5 and drove into La. Our train the Southwest Chief was a couple hours late getting going because of mechanical problems. But we loaded in relaxed and tried to catch some sleep. The views coming home were spectacular, much better than the snow whiteouts we had experienced on our way out. Xavier had shown signs of getting sick before we got on the train and Thank God Heather had stopped and picked up the medications she needed. He was sick and ran a fever on and off all the way across the U.S. But was so good even if he was sick. We had a great time, but were so looking forward to our own beds to fall exhausted into.

A wonderful memory to add to my lifes best things I have done! So glad I could share it with my daughter and grandson. I had promised mountains, palm trees and beaches. Xavier loved them all and smiled though them all. But the squeals of delight as the waves of February kissed his little toes will be one of my fondest memories. Of course the hugs and time spent with Todd are right there too. Today he leaves Colorado after his 10 day leave and heads back to Californai for 28 more days of training at Camp Pendleton. Not quite as strict as BootCamp. But not enough time to write letters, so a few calls will be permited. The next stage will be alot easier on all of us, evenings and weekends free and his phone and laptop will be him. So talking and skype vists are not far away!!


So now back to lifes routines. Treasure trails, beads, working on the house, and relaxing with a good book. Of course our next excitement is that beautiful new grandchild we will be counting down for in August. What a blessihg my family is and I am so grateful to be part of all my kids lives!! This new little one is going to be so lucky to come into a family that will love them so much!! Of course his Papa Binkley will hold up his end of the family tree too!! LOL

I will work a little harder to keep up with this. It won't be long and Todd can keep track of everything on this too. That will be an additional incentive! Take care all, keep warm and spring is really just around the corner. I need to keep chanting that one!!!

Dilly