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All Things EARTH... part 2


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Little leaf peeping & god linner yesterday. The smoke was horrible even at 10,000 feet elevation. My shirt is from Chicos, wish I’d bought larger I just discovered it’s 100% cotton (I’ll have to baby it when washing/drying). Melody

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14 hours ago, purduemom1 said:

Beautiful fall color, Melody! Are those Aspens? I do love the Aspen gold.

Sharon

Yes aspens. If you look closely at the leaves you can see the leaves ‘quaking’

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Thanks, Melody. Several years ago we were driving thru the mountains in CO and the mountain sides  were a mass of gold and green! Absolutely beautiful! I always think of John Denver when I see the aspens. Am I dating myself?

 

Cute shirt-looks very nice on you. I like the sleeve length.

Sharon

Edited by purduemom1
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Just now, purduemom1 said:

Thanks, Melody. Several years ago we were driving thru the mountains in CO and the mountain sides  were a mass of gold and green! Absolutely beautiful! I always think of John Denver when I see the aspens. Am I dating myself?

Sharon

The real Rocky Mountain high...

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Cute shirt Melody!

 

We are finally having some pretty fall weather. Between the smoke from the west and lots of rainy days, the end of September was mostly a bust. Yesterday we packed a picnic and went for a long boat ride. The sun was warm but the wind was a bit cool, so we were wearing our fleece.

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One of the things I love about our lake is that even though there are houses all around it, the POA rules are very strict about tree cutting, so it still looks very natural.

 

All summer I have been re-thinking our outdoor furniture setup, hoping to make our patio a three seasons escape and not just a summer lounger area (we have our table and grill up on the deck). I found an outdoor wicker sectional for almost 70% off and it's coming tomorrow. 😁  We have a wood firepit but now I'm looking for a propane one that will put out more btu's, and a tall heater for up on the deck where we eat. Since we are not entertaining indoors, it will give us a several more weeks of outdoor socializing before winter really sets in. Next visit to TJMaxx I will pick up a couple more fleece throws for our guests to use outside. Between that and some peppermint patties or Irish coffees, we'll be all set. 🍺

 

 

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Fall is hands down my favorite season.  It goes much too fast.  I'm glad we are going to Lake Placid because it is a great place to enjoy it.  While you can never predict the exact peak for foliage, we will get the tail end of it in a few weeks so that is nice.  We are getting some rapid color change right now in our own area.

 

I would like to get out and enjoy it more, which we can do with a drive.  That is about it for now as my husband is still quarantined, and...we have company.

 

Not company in the sense of entertaining, but due to some mixups, my daughter and grandson are staying with us while her husband and pets are elsewhere.  With them having two dogs and two cats, it really wasn't an option to have everyone staying here.  I'm surprised how hard it is to get around just having a playpen, lol.

 

Long story short, there is a delay in their move but they needed to vacate the house they were renting.  Currently, they are looking for a short term rental for a few months, so they are only expected to be here about another week or week and half.  They will be closer by than the house they were renting, hopefully.  Then the move to Florida will be probably around January.  Thanksfully, they are willing to hold open a spot for him.

 

They have been here almost a week already.  My daughter had minor surgery about a month ago, and they require a covid test for that and she hasn't been out much.  We feel pretty safe overall, but there really wasn't much of an option.

 

We are enjoying our time together.  My husband gets to go back to work as an essential worker with restrictions tomorrow, meaning he can only go to and from work and has to be super strict about all protocols.    He has been doing what he can from home, which is good.  Our trip is the week of Columbus Day for three days.

 

I just sat down a bit to go back over fabric choices.  I like to make sure of my choices before I commit, and the kitchen chair option was bothering me, so I went and took another look.  Since it is a solid color and textured, I knew it would be easy to find what I wanted, and I did.  

 

Believe it or not, I am still on the fence for the kitchen curtain fabric.   I still think my final choice will be the olive green color, but I am going to have my husband take a look with me to finalize what we want to get, and then I'm going to go ahead and place the order.  

 

One other things that I did when it came to finalizing the dining room chair print was wait for the two new fabric chairs to come in.  I think they will all look great together, so no change there.

 

And you know what else?  I really feel I should get new dining room and living room drapes.  I don't think the ones I have are going to look the way I would like with the new furniture and fabrics.  Doesn't that always happen?  Lol.  But I knew that all along.  Drapes are really easy to make, but I don't have the ability to make the grommet top that I would like.  

 

I am looking to create a certain feel in that area that is rather soothing.  There are some different neutrals going on.  The dining room chair print, as a reminder, is this:

 

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Since I plan to put some sort of rug in the living room, I didn't really want to go with a print.  The big picture window in the living room faces our back yard, and I love it so much that the curtains really just frame it and add softness.  I don't pull them closed.  From that perspective, I could use the same green  I am considering for the kitchen windows.  BUT...if I do that, then I would probably think twice about an olive green couch.  I am likely going to look for a lighter olive, in keeping with the fresher feel.

 

So here is the possible kitchen fabric, and perhaps for the living room/dining room too:

 

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The other option for the kitchen, and this could be used in the living room/dining room too, is this:

 

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Mixing prints doesn't bother me at all, as long as I'm using a stripe or plaid of harmonious colors.  I think you can see how well these all work.  The plaid is expensive, and may feel a bit busy to me for the living and dining room areas.

 

I didn't mention it previously, but I did consider a stripe.  It creates a bit of a moodier feeling, regardless of what it would be used on.  I would say dining room or living room though.  I don't object to it.  It is simply a different direction. 

 

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The stripe and the solid olive color are both on sale.  

 

Whatever I decide for curtains, I think I would be tempted to buy the fabric myself, and then find someone to make them.  

 

Decisions, decisions...what do you all think?  I love bouncing ideas off of people, and I hope I'm not boring you all to death with this stuff.

 

I am getting excited - the chairs coffee table and ottoman/table will all be in this month.  The second half of our vacation week was going to be focused on doing house stuff, but that may change if my daughter is still here.  She is saying one week, but finding a short term rental that will allow two dogs and two cats is not an easy feat.  That is why I said a week and a half.

 

I'm not complaining...it's a joy to be able to spend time with them.  It's just messing with the planner in me, especially since I gave up some vacation time as pay so I have to think out when I can do things.  I am figuring there is no harm in preparing, and I do get new vacation time all over again in January.   Very few people take time off between January and the end of March, so I can probably figure out some time off then.  In the meantime, I get to enjoy daily time with my daughter and grandson, which is a gift to me.

 

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Margaret, I love the idea if extending the use of your outdoor space.  That is on the list for us, hopefully within two years.  We want to have a deck, and we will build up the furniture for outside accordingly.  It would be great to have a covered area.  Back years ago, I had one of the early versions of outside gas fireplaces.  It was freestanding, and you hooked up the propane tank in the base, like you do with a grill.  The top had ceramic logs like you have in a gas fireplace.  It was really neat. and it was very warm!

 

Melody, it looks like you and Les are getting to enjoy the fall a bit.    I'm sorry that you will need further surgery on your foot.

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Laurie...Did I miss something? I don't recall hearing about your DD et al moving to Florida? Enjoy your time with them! Maybe you'll eventually be coming down more to FL to visit them?

 

I totally get what you mean by moody with that stripe. It's very somber. I don't think it is in keeping with the whole light and airy vibe that you have been talking about. However, I do like that green color in the stripe. One thing that Mom and I have been talking about lately is how our paint colors can affect the way that the house relates to the outside. She has a lot of brown/gold tones in her paint and she thinks it is making those tones on the outside be more prominent in the view through the windows. So she's contemplating painting in some green tones to try to make the greenery outside be more connected to the inside. Since your drapes are just to soften the window frame and basically frame the view...I would take into account how the fabric may or may not relate to what your view is...and what kind of effect it may have, similar to the way that different mat colors affect framed artwork.

 

Margaret...we have also been thinking about having our outside areas be useful for entertaining. We have finally decided on the first project for the backyard. The fire pit. It's an easy thing to think about doing because DH and I both really love campfires. I get what you are saying about having something warmer than a wood fire for outdoors...but the campfire should be good enough for us here. I just love the sound of a wood fire. The crackle and the pops. I can watch a fire for hours. So conducive to good conversation too. Heat lamps are used a lot in AZ...very useful and nice. And for real...sometimes a little too warm if you are sitting too close to one LOL.

 

In other home news...we got our soil analysis back. I have very low ph...perfect for blueberries. And blackberries. Our front and back yards are separated by a short picket fence that is rotting away and leaning away from the posts. It's in really bad shape. And it's in full sun...so we're going to take down the pickets and cross bars...the posts are in good shape though so we're keeping those and going to create a support for the blackberries and make a living fence. I thought I might want to try some thornless blackberries but we got to talking to this very chatty man at one of the several nurseries we hit up on Friday...he was talking about his blackberries and how the first year he thought he had to net them like he does his blueberries (to save them from the birds) but come to find out that the birds leave the blackberries alone because the thorns keep them away. He harvested 35 pounds this year off his 3 blackberry bushes...I think 3...anyway...now I'm enthused for dealing with the thorns.

 

So the berries and the fruit trees...yes...I know...the rats...well the good news is that my neighborhood is TEAMING with hawks. And there are at least 2 cats that are outdoor cats that move around our cul-de-sac too...so I'm definitely going after turning the far side into my orchard area. I'm all into this idea of Permaculture and designing fruit tree guilds. I'm not a lawn enthusiast and so we'll kill off the whole area for the mature drip line for the trees and I'll work on a developing plan for the fruit tree guilds. The early years will be able to have more variety in the area as the immature tree grows. This is where I'm going to focus for year 1. Around what I'm calling the orchard and around the blueberries. The blackberries will be close enough to the orchard to benefit I think...plus there'll be enough blackberry bushes to make a statement for the pollinators I think. 

 

Did I share that I bought a science table for my craft room? I finally cleared enough space back there to get that table in there. Things are getting quite functional all around. I'm still looking for the brackets to support the shelves for two bookcases...I put them in a really safe place that I can't remember. But I can sew now...and things are getting sorted enough that I feel like I can work on projects again without feeling like I'm neglecting things around the house.

 

I did go through my cosmetics finally. I tossed all buy one mascara and most of my lip colors. I tried on all my lip colors and figured out the few that really look good. I searched and found ELF brand clear mascara and brow gel combo. It's a two sided product with one side saying Lash and the other Brow. I'm experimenting with just using the clear to see how I like the way that looks. I've been trying to be better with washing my face, etc., too and so I picked up some Micellar Water. Anyone else use?

 

Edited to add: I forgot to say! Melody...the aspen! Oh! One thing that I miss from our years in CO. There's nothing quite like it. That is gorgeous color.

Edited by Anita Latte
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Hi all. 
 

we turned our fire put into a flower bed as the outdoor fire ban (on wood & charcoal) has now gone on for years & we don’t see an end in sight. Both our daughters have gas fire pits (one propane & one natural gas). They both use the dickens out of them

 

Margaret, good luck finding the gas heater, can’t find any out here, the restaurants are snapping them up. 
 

Laurie, I love the olive. 
 

Anita, good luck with your berries, hope you get lots of fruit. Drip lines are fabulous. You might not get actual fruit for a couple of years (you might get it sooner with your weather)  We like the aspens too, but miss the NE reds. Melody
 

 

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Margaret , I have been looking at those seating groups forever . I am just not sure if it would work on our deck . Furniture really gets beat up there since we are on salt water .I have gone through several sets of furniture since I moved here 19 years ago . The deck people are coming on Friday to give us an estimate on redoing the deck . I am sure it will be high since the deck is huge .

Laurie , I feel the stripe fabric is too dark . Enjoy your daughter and grandson while you can once they move away it is very hard .

Anita , Good luck with all your plantings .

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Margaret, your outdoor deck plans sound really nice and especially so with your fantastic setting. Hadn’t thought about a shortage of heaters until Melody mentioned it. 
 

Anita, yum-fresh berries! What a treat. 
 

Sally, hope your deck plans come together. Are there deck furniture materials that can withstand the salt air? 
Sharon

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1 hour ago, purduemom1 said:


 

Sally, hope your deck plans come together. Are there deck furniture materials that can withstand the salt air? 
Sharon

The problem is the furniture also has to be heavy , With the winds coming off the Bay the furniture gets blown all over . We had to bungee cord our grill to the deck to keep it from going down the steps . Right now I have a table 4 chairs another small table and two chairs and two chaises with another small table . They are all still okay but starting to rust .If I got a deal like Margaret I would grab it . I need to take a picture of my view . I hope you are doing okay . 

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Sally, I never really thought much about the wind.  We get some windy weather at times, but not steadily.  I'll bet that is a lot of work to keep your furniture from blowing around and getting damaged.  

 

Margaret, that sounds like you got a great deal.

 

My husband and I sat down yesterday and chatted about the fabrics.  I told him I felt very certain about the dining room chair fabric, and if he wanted something different, I would certainly consider it but I would be disappointed.  I don't do that much - I know the important of compromise.  But I really like this fabric a lot.  He didn't even blink, and said he loved it too, so if I really wanted it, that was going to be the fabric for the chairs.

 

I then showed him a new option for the kitchen.  I mentioned yesterday that I was bothered about my choice for the kitchen chairs, and when I went back to double check it, sure enough, it has a pinkish undercast to it so I chose something else.  

 

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This fabric too did not raise any questions.  The problem with the other fabric was that I could not get a good look at the different tones.  Whenever I zoomed in, it was very blurry.  I told my husband I kept seeing what seemed like a pinkish undertone to it, and he immediately saw it too.  So this golden fabric is going to look great in the kitchen, across from the dining room.

 

Then came the kitchen curtains.  We started to discuss dining room drapes, an area rug and what we are anticipating for a couch.  I felt very evenly divided between the two fabrics, and after a bit of a discussion, we decided to go with the plaid.  It has a lighter feel to it, which I think will work well.  It will also look really nice with the kitchen chair fabric.

 

We are getting pretty excited about everything.  I'm a little nervous about making the curtains, but I should be okay.  The existing curtains are going to make a great template for the basic dimensions, because they fit so perfectly.  I just have to measure a handful of times, add up the numbers, and pin everything out first.  They will be faux roman blinds.  What I have now are fabric blinds that hang on a curtain rod, so I am doing the same.  I found that once I adjusted them, I never raised or lowered them after that.  they have a wooden dowel that helps everything lay really nice, so I am just going to make a pocket for that and reuse it.  

 

One reason I considered a stripe is that the kitchen curtains were a stripe, and it was interesting.  My husband didn't like the striped fabric I posted a picture of yesterday at all..  I have considered ordering it and making a few pillows for the living room couch, and maybe having a few from the dining room chair fabric as well.  They will coordinate nicely.

 

The big thing is, the stripe makes me think of a very traditional, formal look.  I think it is too dark for what I want the room to feel like, and it feels kind of formal.  I want the room to feel nicer than the family room, but not stiff.

 

So I think I have it all figured out.  The big thing will the curtains, as I said earlier.  I want to line them so they will last a long time and not fade quickly.  I need to think about that a bit.  

 

I am feeling so antsy and can't wait to get started on everything!  

 

Melody, filling your fire pit with a flower bed was a good way to reuse it.  Was the fire pit part of a patio area?  I know you mentioned you love the olive colored fabric.  I do too...so that is the color we are going to look for when we get the new couch.  It's a nice mid-tone, and we have seen this shade in the store when looking at the couch options.   Our big decision will be on they type of fabric.  I love textures, and how they go together.  I think the olive couch will like nice across from the oak dining room set too.  

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I called and canceled two Royal cruises I had on the books. I had a short cruise in January and then the TA on Harmony in April. Somehow, I either missed the proper ports for the January cruise when I booked it, or they changed it...I had thought it was a 5-night that only went to Labadee and CocoCay. Seemed like a great getaway and I snagged a corner aft balcony. But then I saw that it was going to Nassau and Labadee...and when I booked the TA, I always planned to cancel the January cruise so that wasn't too big a deal to cancel.

 

Canceling the TA though...OMG...I'm almost embarrassed to say that I totally cried. I was so excited for that cruise...booking it before it was available to book on the website. I was on the phone for so long with the agent while I compared so many different cabins and was excited to finally try a Boardwalk balcony. All those Sea Days! I so enjoyed the Allure TA with Mom and Dad and had been waiting and waiting to be able to do one with DH. And then we were planning to meet up with DS in Barcelona for the end of his break between terms in the Spring.

 

I just can't imagine feeling comfortable being on a ship for that long...headed to an international destination...even if the cruise were to actually happen. And having DS travel to Spain...the UK enacted a sudden 14-day quarantine requirement after having said that Spain was a travel corridor...there was very little notice given and so suddenly all these Brits had to suddenly plan for to self-isolate...I guess there are a ton of Brits that have vacation residences in Spain...it's so easy to go back and forth over there...unless you suddenly have to self isolate for 14-days if you go to your vacation home. 

 

Anyway...I wouldn't risk something happening that would affect DS's ability to go to school. And at this point, if I WERE able to take that much vacation time with DH, and if we were going to spend that money...I would just head straight to London.

 

We haven't talked about it yet, but it's pretty much a given that DS will not be home for Christmas this year. So anyway...it all combined together to make me very sad...I canceled my cruises and cried.

 

I did have both booked with refundable deposits so the good news is that I get $200 back for the January and $900 back for the TA. So that's helpful, I suppose. Stupid COVID.

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Laurie, love that golden fabric!

 

Anita, I’m so sorry about you not seeing DS at the holidays & oh, your TA 😢

 

we’re discussing Doing a lift & shift of our March b2b. I wouldn’t even consider it, but the ship is still in Greece. I don’t have to do anything until mid November so will just get options. Bums me out just thinking about the possibility

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Laurie , After reading all your posts about discussing fabrics with your husband I realized I have never discussed fabrics with either of my husbands . I usually just pick it and it goes up . I also sometimes just go to a furniture store a buy a piece of furniture and as I drive home I think maybe I should have said something . We did recently go furniture shopping together because I wanted a new red leather recliner .I think because I was single between marriages that I am maybe slightly too independent .

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So funny Sally...

 

Today I bought a dining set!! I'm very happy. The table that I really want is way beyond what I'm able/willing to spend right now. And I'm not sure what size will ultimately fit best in the room...in part because I envision needing new seating...and that will be so much more expense...SO I've been scouring Craigslist for a round table somewhere between 36-48 inches. I have to be able to live with it for a while though...so I have to like something about it. And today was the day! $50 cash for a 44" table and 4 chairs! I'm very excited. 

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Sally, I can and do buy things for the house on my own.  For some bigger things like furniture, we often choose together.  He had all his mom's old furniture when I met him, and he enjoys picking things out.  Some things, like the two upholstered chairs in the dining room, I just went ahead and ordered because we talked about it and he like the idea, so I just went ahead and made the choice.

 

This is my second marriage, but I spend a lot of time alone after my divorce.  It is actually an adjustment to me to not just jump right in and get something.  At the same time, I appreciate that he shares the enthusiasm of making a house into a home, so that is pretty cool.

 

We have areas where one of us holds the upper hand, you could say.  Our garage is huge - it can hold 4 cars.  He has a lot of collections in it, and I don't mess with it at all.  It's all his, as far as I am concerned. He was a volunteer firefighter for many years, so he has some nice collections regarding that along with all his Dodge Challenger pictures and the like.

 

When it comes to the office (he calls it a den) I picked the chair and curtains, and while I showed it to him, I made the choice.  That Singer table I bought is going in here as well, and I chose most of the stuff for the spare room.  

 

Anita, was is your table like?  You got a great deal!  I did something similar when I was looking for a crib.  There was a lady near by that had 3 kids.  The crib she had been using was falling apart, so she bought a new one even though her son was only going to be in it for about 6 more months.  I got the mattress and crib for around $50.00, I think.  I made sure it didn't have any recalls or anything.  And it is getting use right now.  🙂  

 

 

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Sally, we pick everything together. He’s very traditional & I’m a lot more contemporary. But I pick all of our cars (he could care less about cars & I love em)

 

great buy Anita!  You’ll likely have that table for years!

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