Things We Hate to Say

Having a little bump in the road of life right now...

Nothing permanent but enough to have to say that I may be away for a bit.

Maybe time for a complete overhaul...

not sure...

I do know that priorities are being revamped and 

things that seemed important may not seem that way now.

Not speaking the actual word because it is overly alarming, 

lets just say a little surgery and a few months of treatment and all will be well again.

Spring is a time to renew and refresh...

heart, mind and body.

I am blessed in having a loving family and dear friends among which I count all of you.

I will be visiting and storing up ideas and inspiration and joy galore.

Frippery Farmhouse will still be my shelter

I just won't be blathering on about it for a while.

However I will be enjoying all that you have to say about your own little corners of the world while I heal and renew.

Peace, P.

Happy and Blessed Easter

Hope your day is filled with joy.

This time of year is truly the time of new beginnings.

More than January first this is the real time of awakening...

awakening to new life...

new ways of living.

Are you ready to be refreshed?

The possibilities before us are endless.

No hesitation, choose a path,

take action, renew yourself.

I m ready to face new challenges and conquer old fears.

Who is with me?

Yours in rebirth, P.

Linking to

How Sweet the Sound

Jennifer Rizzo

Welcome Spring!

Still here...

Getting tired of this...

Trying to change this

into more of this

but work just makes me want to come home and do this...

Hooray for spring!

So ready around here for some warmth and color.

Yours in blossom, P.

Board and Batten the Frugal Way

Bedroom progress at Frippery Farmhouse.

Super easy and cheap board and batten is complete.

I just used 2" wide lattice board from the big box store molding section. 

About $7 for an 8' length.

I used three.

Spaced them out to have 3 sections above the bed and 

incorporated the existing window trim to save money.

Straight cuts, the trusty nail gun and a bit of Gorilla Glue and wood putty...

Viola!

I did use Glidden's super shiny gel paint for trim and 

it kind of accentuates the bumpiness of the drywall but 

all in all I love it.

Under $25!

What's not to love?

How are you progressing with your to do's?

I will update as we move along.

Not much else happening except work, dinner, sleep, repeat...

Yours in calling it DONE, P.

Art Studio Afternoon

My neglected art studio.

I know it misses me.

abundant supplies sitting unused,

waiting to be transformed.

Time,

sweet time, 

is what is needed.

Not today I'm afraid.

Too many other obligations.

I know my dear little space will be waiting for me when I have a free moment.

Until then, a quick visit will have to do.

Oh but I do miss it.

Yours in dreaming, P.

A Dog's Life

 The phrase to lead a dog's (or cat's?) life is always seen as a negative.

Not here at Frippery Farmhouse.

Just a few examples...

(From just a few of the 8 dogs and cats who live here...

seriously...

no lie...)

Drink from the same bowl as the dogs?

I don't think so.

Shadow wants only the freshest water.

Not a drop of dog drool in sight.

Let's not forget nap time. 

What do you mean this furniture is meant for humans?

You don't really expect us to sleep on that comfy floor cushion do you?

Sorry mom, please let us in.

We will try the dog bed one more time.

Although we really prefer a nice warm lap.

How's the weekend at your house?

Yours in the love of furry friends, P.

No Posts, No Excuses, No Regrets

 Hey there friends.

Time is not being wasted here at Frippery Farmhouse.

Back to work full time for a while and in between I have been

creating...

reading...

 organizing...

 fluffing...

rearranging...

and slowly but surely making progress on the bedroom.

Lot's to do before I share it but why, oh why, is this the first time in almost 20 years 

that this room finally feels like a sanctuary?

We will be working on the wall behind the bed today...

unless I get too tempted to take a nap.

I can see a finished room in the not so distant future.

It makes me happy!

What is making you smile this week?

Yours in getting it done, P.

The Gift of Time

Seems there is a theme here lately.

One that came close to home in the past week or so.

Frippery Farmhouse has been a crazy busy place.

Health issues and new business opportunities including a trip to the ER and a trip to LA for hubs.

Yin and Yang.

A new job for our son who then had to turn down the one he really wanted because he felt it wasn't right to back out of his commitment to the first offer.

Ups and downs. 

Getting ready to start back to my full time temp job next week.

Time has been at a premium.

It is a struggle to fit it all in.

Then the sad news that my daughter's beloved high school art teacher, Joan McGuire passed away.

Sadie was getting ready to visit her on Tuesday when the news came.

Ms. McGuire taught art at Mercy High School for 34 years and was such an influence for so many girls, including my daughter.

From summer art camp during elementary school through four years of art and AP art in high school her encouragement and creativity gave my daughter, and so many, the courage to follow their own dreams of becoming artists and designers.

To say that hearts are broken is an understatement.

To say that time is a gift not to be wasted could not be more plain.

Ms. McGuire was my age,

56, not so young any more but not nearly ready to leave when there is so much left to accomplish.

Please pray for her family and friends and all whose lives she touched.

She left behind so much joy and lived a meaningful life.

What more could one aspire too?

The lesson brought home by this is don't waste that precious gift of time.

Make the most of every moment.

Posting may be less frequent on Frippery as I sift through all that is happening here.

I do not want to waste your time or mine on posting for the sake of it.

That gift is going to be used more intentionally.

Bear with me as I make some changes around here.

I will leave you with a song that was something of a theme in my heart during my daughters high school years and is especially appropriate when remembering Ms. McGuire and the magic that came from the basement art room at Mercy High School.

Ms. McGuire, you were a beautiful soul.

Yours in every blessed moment, P.

Lyrics

In this very room there's quite enough love for one like me, And in this very room there's quite enough joy for one like me, And there's quite enough hope and quite enough power to chase away any gloom, For Jesus, Lord Jesus ... is in this very room. And in this very room there's quite enough love for all of us, And in this very room there's quite enough joy for all of us, And there's quite enough hope and quite enough power to chase away any gloom, For Jesus, Lord Jesus ... is in this very room. In this very room there's quite enough love for all the world, And in this very room there's quite enough joy for all the world, And there's quite enough hope and quite enough power to chase away any gloom, For Jesus, Lord Jesus ... is in this very room.

Projects, Deadlines and How to Keep Moving Forward

This morning the weather forecaster related some statistics that seemed to be a metaphor for life.

Life is just like the weather in Cincinnati.

Today, the high will be 39 degrees, but the record high for this date was 70 and the record low was -25.

Almost 100 degrees variance.

Living here you never know what the weather will throw at you from one day to the next, 

even all in one day for that matter.

Just like life.

So roll with it.

Grab 10 minutes each day and work towards a goal.

Take 10 projects and give each of them 10 minutes. 

Or give one project 10 chunks of ten throughout the day.

Not an hour and forty all at once, just 10 here and there.

Obviously some projects will need a chunk of time once you get going, but moving towards actually doing a project may take ten minutes of prep here and there so you are ready to devote a large chunk of time when you have it.

That's over 11 hours toward your goals each week!

The biggest projects needing to be tackled around Frippery Farmhouse are...

1) Get the bins from Christmas put away. (Yes they are still stacked neatly in a corner of the dining room.)

2) Finish the Master Bedroom trim and final details.

3) Redo the Master bath on a very tight budget.

4) Make the laundry room workable to actually be comfy doing laundry.

5) Add a door to the office so barking dogs do not interrupt every phone conversation.

6) Powder room redo.

7) Improve the lighting in the family room.

8) Fix and upholster the thrifted dining room chairs.

9) Floors, floors, floors...

10) Coat closet, my redo did not work as well as I hoped. Time to rethink.

There are more but 10 is such a nice even number.

Now that list could seem overwhelming but thinking in 10 minute spurts it just may be doable.

I will start back at my full time temp job in two weeks, 10 1/2 hours away will leave little time at home.

But that is part of flowing in the river of change.

Ten minutes a day may be all I have some days...so no frets...

it is still a step toward a goal.

Oh, and deadlines too.

10 weeks, ten days, ten hours, set a reasonable time to finish each goal or project.

That gives a sense of responsibility to complete each one.

So are you with me? 

Let's see where this gets us.

Maybe my 2013 word should be TEN...

Yours in accomplishments, P.

Ten Minutes to a Tidier Room

That whole ten minute philosophy got me going.

If the goal is making life simpler then the first way to do that is 

to streamline the cleaning process.

Collectors, artists, visual people love to display their scrumptious eye candy.

Not so good when it is time to dust and clean.

A ten minute reduction in my table top nicky knackies made a world of difference in my space.

It just feels more...well...spacious!

Edited side tables leave room for a glass or to rest a book when you are finished reading.

A wall of art is easier to dust than a pile of vintage books that must be moved each time you would like to use this little table for notes or sketching.

The glass doors have been moved to the dining room.

No more contortions just to vacuum behind them or reach around for the ipad charger

in the outlets they happened to cover.

Still working on the serving cabinet.

It needs to be ready to serve.

Taking stock of what is clutter and what is useful can make 

a huge change in the ease of everyday living.

Don't let all that junk bog you down.

Ten minutes towards freedom each day.

Take ten with me, P.