my dealer.

Because some conversations are just too funny not to record.

The other day I had dinner with my parents, and I brought corn from my CSA. This is the conversation I had with my dad.

Dad: Is that from your dealer?
Me: Yes, Dad. It's the same place I get my pot.

every home needs a harvey.

funny paint guy.

I stopped by Lowes tonight to pick up paint for the dresser (goal #6) and some sample colors for the front door (stripping it isn't work out the way I was hoping). While he was mixing everything, the guy at the paint counter chatted with me about the projects I'm working on. I asked him about recommended finishes (eggshell, satin,semi-gloss) for exterior doors, and he reminded me that when I buy paint for the front door, I need to let them know what I'm using it for.

Me: I know, I'll need exterior paint for the door.
Funny paint guy: Okay, so you're not just a dumb blonde.
Me: Nope, I painted that on, too!

narnia.

I'm a huge fan of C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia - and the crazy part is, I became a fan as an adult. I remember reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in elementary school, and enjoying it, but its the allegory to God's story that captivates me the most.

I just found out (thanks to this post) that the newest movie adapted from the series, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, is set to be released on December 10, and I can't wait.

Watch the trailer here:

curb appeal (my dilemma).

I mentioned last week that I was starting to dream about fixing up the outside of my house, particularly the curb appeal. I do have several ideas in mind - but right now I'm starting with collecting inspiration photos and pulling down ivy.

So, when I remembered that Amanda's Decorating Dilemmas party was coming up, I figured it was a perfect opportunity to post photos and ask for feedback. Plus, these parties are just fun - I haven't linked up myself before, but I love checking out everyone else's posts (and adding my two cents!).

So, this is the front of my house:

A close up of my front door:

And this is what it looked like when I bought it:

The flag left with the previous homeowners, and a few years ago, my friend-and-landscaper Robbie pulled out the old trees and added some new landscaping. Last summer, most of the gutters were taken down and the broken siding (not visible here) was fixed.

Now I'm ready to come up with a more involved plan. What would you do if this was your house, and you had free reign to change it up?

Since I'm just gathering ideas at this point (even though I do have some of my own), I'm open to any and all suggestions - but there are probably a few things I should mention (especially for anyone reading this who doesn't know me in real life):

•  I really don't enjoy landscaping and gardening - AT ALL. Even when I'm not dealing with seasonal allergies (and I am - because it would have taken me weeks to pull down all that ivy on my own), I don't enjoy those things. I even pay someone else to mow my grass - and though I'm usually pretty thrifty, I'm perfectly happy to continue paying him to do the work.
• I'm not afraid of DIY and trying to do things myself - but I am only one person, and I have a full-time job. And a lot of other commitments. I'm already prepared for this to be a multi-step, multi-month effort.
• I'm cheap - and I'm saving for a trip to Africa this summer.

So - let me hear it! And if you have any inspiration photos, share those, too.

(And if you like giving advice - head on over to the party to find more dilemmas)!

ireland.

I know I'm posting this late in the day, but...

Happy St. Patty's Day!

I celebrated by enjoying my red hair, wearing green, and listening to whatever Irish music I could find online that wouldn't get me in trouble at work (i.e. no songs about whiskey).

quick takes.

--- 1 ---

Lots of little things running around my head lately, hence the format of this post (modeled after 7 Quick Takes Friday at Conversion Diary, though I'm not making this a regular thing, not linking up, and not even listing 7 things. Maybe. We'll see.

-- 2 --

Speaking of Conversion Diary, its the blog of a woman who converted to Catholicism from atheism, and it makes for a pretty interesting read. Even if you're not Catholic. This post is my favorite.

-- 3 --

It occurred to me this week that whenever I do blog every day for a month (goal #13 for 2010), the two people who actually read this blog are going to be bored out of their minds. Because I'm just not sure I can come up with something interesting to say every day for a month.

-- 4 --

Speaking of goals (is it weird how my brain is so linear?), my tv fast has been an epic failure. Witness the fact that I'm actually typing this in front of the TV.

-- 5 --

I'm so glad I don't live in Frederick this winter! Though I do love how blue the sky is after a snowfall. My sisters have posted videos and photos to Facebook - my favorites:

My brother climbing the snow mountain with trash bags on his feet
(aka "Bailey is the smartest one of the bunch")
Lexie chasing her ball
(aka "I could be a sled dog!")

Appropriately named Snowmaggedon 2 (Kelli's photo)

Baltimore's Inner Harbor, partly frozen (Kelli's photo)

-- 6 --

My parents are coming to visit this weekend (they made it out of Frederick before Tuesday's blizzard), and I'm excited to hang out with them, but I'm also excited because my dad and I are going to build custom shelves in my hall closet (part of goal #8), and because he's bringing some of his power tools!

-- 7 --

That's it.

Oh, look, I did do 7!

tlc on cbn.

Here is the Lettered Cottage segment on the 700 Club:

Or, you can watch it on the CBN website here.

more bits of randomness.

Every now and then, rather than having one single topic to share, I feel like I need to write a catch-up post with lots of little things. This is one of those posts.

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I'm in the throes of Christmas decorating. Isn't it odd that with things like this, it always get worse before its gets better? I've been utterly overwhelmed the last couple days, but today, when I realized that I have something going on every night this week, I spent some time at lunch just making lists (making lists relaxes me). My tree is up, I finally found the star for the top, and now I have a plan on what is left to do, so I'm a lot less stressed.

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Our church is throwing a birthday party for Jesus on Saturday as an outreach, so I'm busy with last-minute plans for that. Sunday we passed out 500 flyers in local neighborhoods - I'm excited and hoping for a big turnout!

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Layla and Kevin from The Lettered Cottage are here for their 700 Club segment, and they're just as fun in real life as they seem to be on their blog. I hung out with them and Heather Sunday night, shopping for the room they're redoing, then going to dinner and to see the lights on the boardwalk. Tonight I dropped by after work for a little while to see the progress so far, and help out with the room a bit, before I headed back home to work on my own house.

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My sister Kelli and I are in the middle of a challenge - we both threw in $50, and have agreed to do 30 minutes of cardio, three times a week through the end of the year. If we don't keep up our end, we forfeit our $50, and let me just say - that money is a pretty strong motivation.

We started at the beginning on November, so we're in the middle of week 5 right now. In some ways, its been really good - there are many times over the last few weeks that the only thing that got me to the gym was our challenge, and it definitely helped while we were both home for Thanksgiving, because we planned exercise into our schedule together. On the other hand, isn't this the craziest time of the year to start something like this?

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Lastly - I'm going to see Chris Tomlin on Friday night with Heather, Heather, Kelly, and Mary, and can't wait! Its going to be a great show.

my favorite (christmas) things.

I set out to make a list of some of my favorite things, to participate in the blog party at 320 * Sycamore, then realized that a large number of these things are Christmas-related.

Which actually shouldn't surprise me at all.

Here's the list, in no particular order:

1. Andrew Peterson's Behold The Lamb of God

Hands down, my favorite Christmas CD (and I like a lot of Christmas CDs). Last year, I saw the show live in Richmond - amazing.



2. The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado

This is a beautiful story for kids, and a great lesson for the rest of us.



3. Peppermint White Mochas at Starbucks

The guy at my local Starbucks just told me that they can actually make this all year round, but I think I'll be saving it for November & December as a holiday treat.


4. Fruit Chocolates from Harry & David

I blame Heather for getting me hooked on this stuff. It's fruit, right, so it's still healthy?



5. The Jesus Storybook Bible

Besides being beautifully written and illustrated, this does a better job than anything I've ever seen at teaching kids that every story in the Bible really just points to one great Hero.

the lettered cottage.

I've mentioned before that I read a lot of blogs. One of my favorites is The Lettered Cottage.

Layla and Kevin are totally redoing their cottage, top to bottom, and I love so many of the things they've done. Their kitchen is gorgeous, and their reading room makes me actually wish for a small room so I can do the same thing. And when I read about her idea for a transom window, I quite literally got up and walked into my hallway (i.e. the hallway of many doors) to see it would make sense in my house (I don't think it will).

But my absolute favorite thing about them is that they hadn't even used power tools until a couple of years ago. I love stories like that, because it gives me courage to try bold things with my house. (And not just mine - wait until you see how Heather and I are busting out the girl power in her dining room next weekend).

Anyway, so here's what I'm really excited about...

A few weeks ago, Heather (a producer for the 700 Club) and I were talking about a segment she wanted to do. She wanted to have a home renovation bloggers come in and completely redo a room, on a budget. I suggested the Lettered Cottage. She checked them out and was hooked (just like me). So she booked them, and they're coming in December!

I'm so excited - I can't wait!

typewriter art.

I can't remember where I first heard about vol25, but I think her prints are soooo adorable. These are a couple of my favorites:

You Only Live Once by vol25

When Life Hands You Lemons by vol25

A week or so ago she asked for quote ideas for a couple prints of typewriters, so I suggested this one:

Write it in your heart that every day is the best day in the year. - Emerson

And she used it! Here's the finished print - you can buy it here on Etsy.

Write It In Your Heart by vol25

spring.

I found this bucket at a thrift store and spray painted last year.


This year I added the Spring sign I found on clearance at Michaels.


I had to call the plumber today and delay my planned trip to Frederick until tonight (for the record, old houses and garbage disposals do not mix). He asked me, "What's your last name, Spring?"

I said, "No, it's O'Neal."

"Then why does it say spring on your door?"

"Because it's spring."

"So you have to change that four times a year?"

baby stuff.

If I were decorating a nursery, these are the prints I would want to use:

siberian fast food.

This is the design on the t-shirt I bought my brother in Russia:

featured again.

Another of my ideas was featured on Tip Junkie - this snowman from last year's Christmas decorations.

a different perspective.

I'm visiting my sister Kelli at her (kind of) new place in Baltimore for the night, before heading to Frederick for the rest of week for Thanksgiving with my family. We spent some time walking around Federal Hill, checking out the Cross Street Market and stopping in the only store still open that looked interesting.

It was this little place with a French name and a British owner. We talked for a while about Thanksgiving, about the flowers we had bought for Mom and who was making what part of the meal, when he reminded us that Thanksgiving is an American holiday.

"Of course, we don't celebrate Thanksgiving," he said. "Well, we do, just on another day. July 4th."

Um, you know we're Americans, right?

blog award.

Idyllic Dreams tagged me and gave me this blog award - how fun!

According to the rules, I need to answer the following questions, all with one-word answers (except I'm going to ignore that one-word part), then tag 7 other bloggers.

1. Where is your cell phone? Beside me.
2. Where is your significant other? Beats me.
3. Your hair color? Blond, I guess?
4. Your mother? Strong, caring, giving, selfless.
5. Your father? Affectionate, funny, crazy about his family.
6. Your favorite thing? The afghan my Mom made me.
7. Your dream last night? Um, no, way too personal, because last night's dream was weird.
8. Your dream/goal? Married with a bunch of kids.
9. The room you’re in? My living room.
10. Your hobby? Making jewelry.
11. Your fear? Touching fish.
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? See #8.
13. Where were you last night? Home.
14. What you’re not? Free-spirited.
15. One of your wish list items? Big, high-quality wood cutting board.
16. Where you grew up? Frederick.
17. The last thing you did? Chalkboard spray paint.
18. What are you wearing? Jeans.
19. Your tv? Friends reruns.
20. Your pet? Dakota and Harvey.
21. Your computer? Work laptop.
22. Your mood? Content.
23. Missing someone? Jake. Always.
24. Your car? 2000 Chevy Malibu LS. It gets me from point A to point B.
25. Something you’re not wearing? Shoes.
26. Favorite store? Depends on my mood - Michaels, thrift stores, Old Navy, Target, Container Store.
27. Your summer? Wonderful.
28. Love someone? Lots of someones.
29. Your favorite color?
30. When was the last time you laughed? A few hours ago, at Christy's description of her Columbia trip.
31. Last time you cried? Friday night. It was a rough night.

The problem with tagging 7 other bloggers is that while I read a lot of blogs, there aren't that many who I actually know, or who would do this. So I'll keep the list short and sweet.

Iris at Мы живем в Россий...
Lori at little pitter patter
Steph at I Surrender All

what a weekend.

I just got back from what was, hands-down, one of the most fun and entertaining weekends I have had in a long, long time. My friend Bethany emailed me last Sunday to say she was putting together a last minute trip to her parents' house on Smith Mountain Lake, and she invited me to come, too. It took a bit of last-minute frenzy, but I managed to find someone to care for all three dogs.

And, oh, wow, was it fun. Swimming, boating, good food (including s'mores), friends, and a ton of laughing. I even swam in the lake twice. Where there are fish. This is a very big deal.

Quite frankly, I mostly survived it by pretending that they weren't there. And kicking my legs constantly to scare them away.

And I so wish that I had a video of my (failed) attempt to jump off the super bouncer (kind of an inner tube/trampoline), not only to share, but to see it myself - because as funny as it was to me, I think it must have been that much more hilarious to watch.

featured.

Most of the people who know me in real life know that I love to give gifts, I love to decorate my house, I love to organize anything, and I love to entertain. Tip Junkie is one of my favorite places to get ideas on all those things. And after months of subscribing to it, I finally found something to contribute - this post on Karen's baby shower from March.

And it was featured! Check out my five seconds of fame:

Oh Baby! Cute Baby Shower Ideas