Monday, January 30, 2012

Had to Hire Some Extra Help!

I've been so busy lately I decided to enlist some extra help.  He works cheap, but was not easy to train.....

Not sure what my customers think ~ he doesn't have much to say, so there is definitely no "hard selling" going on!

He tends to take too many breaks (notice the t.v. remote) and he is somewhat of a narcissist.


~Keep Life Simple by Mixing It Up! TM
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Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Something to Think About.....

So many people move along because they think the grass is always greener “over there”…….but if they would just take the time to water their own grass they would find that not only is it just as Green, it belongs to them!

Too look great grass needs to be mowed, watered, fertilized, trimmed, groomed for weeds and sometimes de-bugged! Grass is only Green if you give it the attention it needs. Think of your Business or your Life as grass, is it Green or dead and brown?


~An original thought by KL of KLsCupboard.com

~Keep Life Simple by Mixing It Up! TM
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Thursday, January 19, 2012

Snowbound and Getting Cabin Fever!

The view from my kitchen deck - this was taken on Tuesday the 17th - our
first significant snow of the year!
We've been rocked with some pretty wild weather here in the Pacific Northwest this past week - snow, low temperatures and wild wind with gusts up to 50 miles per hour.  Needless to say it is a winter wonderland with snow drifts and wind chill temperatures at minus 15 (and lower).  The kids have enjoyed "Snow Days" this whole week since the schools have been closed.  It wasn't so bad earlier in the week when the kids could get outside to play, but then the winds started up yesterday and the temperatures dropped - I think we all have a small dose of cabin fever.  Our dog is even suffering....she just can't understand why Daddy isn't taking her out for her nightly walk - goofy dog!  She is a short hair Beagle/Pit mix - not a breed that does well in the cold, although she does love to play in the snow (it's the being wet that she hates).
Our "Bella" enjoying a romp in the snow!
I was excited to be able to get out last night and make a trip to the grocery store - I froze and I had to dive on "ice roads" but at least I got out and got to see people other than the hubby and kids! It's the small things in life that I take for granted and boy do I appreciate them when they are denied for any length of time!
Poor birdies - no food for them, this is our bird feeder that you see peeking out of the snow!  It has since become completely covered in snow.
Another view from my deck.....the train that usually runs twice a day (tracks are just beyond the trees) hasn't even been running - when it's too frozen for the train it is a good indicator that it's too cold for me!
 I will venture out today, the wind is still blowing but the temps are starting to warm up (it's 18 degrees right now, but supposed to get up in the low 30's).  I am so thankful I don't live in an area where this kind of crazy weather is normal - I can take it in small doses, but I will never be a "cold weather gal"........

Stay safe and warm everyone!  Spring is just around the corner......
~Keep Life Simple by Mixing It Up! TM
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Monday, January 9, 2012

Almost Home......

Right after we moved in....our brand new furniture.  This view is from the
living room looking towards the back of the house (Kitchen & Dining area).
I have been so busy around my house that I haven't had time to compile any new posts in just over a week!  They do say that "Time Flies When You Are Having Fun" and I have been having so much fun lately.....
Standing in the Dining room looking
towards the front of the house.
Are you curious as to what I've been doing?  The not so fun part:  putting away all of my Christmas decorations.  The fun part: as I have been putting away the decorations I have been slowing re-arranging furniture and putting up new vignettes ~ no I have not taken any photos yet because everything is not "just right" yet.  Once I get the furniture situated and see what I have to work with I plan on taking a trip to our local thrift store to pick up some new decorative pieces.  All of these new blogs that I have found have given me so much inspiration to work with. I know Rome wasn't built in a day so I will have patience and add to my house one special piece at a time.

Looking at our plain fireplace and walls.
Right now I have a pretty blank canvas to work with and I've arranged the furniture in both the living room and the dining room in a totally new way.  I cannot believe that in two and a half years of living in our house that I have not done this arrangement before now........both rooms seem so much more spacious and open!  Since our house is so new it has the "open concept" going on - which boils down to the living room is open to the dining room and the dining room is open to the kitchen.  None of the spaces are very large and I have quite a few furniture pieces (some of which will go into my new craft room once it is completed) so it does tend to feel pretty tight at times.  Our house is about 2,000 square feet but right now we are doing most of our living in the upper floor which is only about 1,100 square feet (similar to apartment size).  The downstairs of our house is a work in progress - once it is complete we will have two more bedrooms, a small recreation room (the Man Cave) and a laundry room/bathroom combo.  We are 3/4 of the way through the sheet rock stage and we are trying to the work ourselves, neither hubby or I are very adept at these types of things (we have been learning as we go) so it has been a long process.

We will get this project done and hubby has promised me that it will be done before the summer is over this year ~while optimism is great, I still have the "We Will See" attitude..........


~Keep Life Simple by Mixing It Up! TM
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Sunday, January 1, 2012

Happy New Year & Thank You!

Today starts 2012 and I just wanted to express a heartfelt thank you to each of you who follow my blog, support my business and/or leave me comments!  I began blogging just over a year ago as a way to express both myself and promote my work at home business and while I am sure I have made many mistakes along the way I am very happy with the blog that I have today and am very thankful to each and everyone of my followers.

I know that there are many blogs out there that I follow and I do read daily, but I don't always leave a comment so my hope is that there are many of you out there that do the same with my blog.  So whether or not you are a "silent follower" or a "vocal follower" you are appreciated!  Now I have to get off my computer and blog so I can get both my house and myself ready for our 2012 New Year's Dinner.  I have my family coming over to celebrate both the New Year and my Mom's Birthday!  We decided to keep it simple with hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans and chips.  Not the normal dinner you would expect in the middle of winter, but that's the way we roll!

~Keep Life Simple by Mixing It Up! TM
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