Friday's Fave Five #149

Friday again, already?  Seriously?  Time has flown!

It's time to once again reflect on the highlights of the week.  You can always find at least 5 if you look.  Once you've found them, why not share them?  You can do so by linking up at Susanne's blog, Living To Tell The Story.

1.  Cooking in my own home:  I'd never thought I say this since I have proclaimed often just how much I'm sick of cooking after 35 years, but I enjoyed cooking this week.  Even though I drug a lot of stuff over to my aunt's home to use while I was cooking in her kitchen, it wasn't the same as being in my own domain. And, may I say, I love using my stove!  I missed it greatly while I was gone.

2. The new siding on my home is done!  I did not have time to take photos since the carpenters just finished yesterday, but to me, the outside of my home looks gorgeous!  Of course, landscaping needs to be done, but we may not get to that until next spring.  After all, we're in the middle of a killer heat wave ...

3. My a/c works:  Midweek, our a/c quit cooling.  We were upset thinking, "Oh no, it feels like déjà vu, last summer's a/c troubles are happening again!" I started sending up prayers for help!  My hubby got a friend to help him take it out of the wall and then he cleaned out the insides.  Seems there was a lot of sawdust and junk from all the remodeling that had gotten sucked up in there.  Now it working just fine. I'm so thankful that God answered my prayer that it would be an easy problem to solve.

4.  Unpacking is almost over!  I could do a happy dance on this one!  We only have 2 boxes and a bag of throw pillows to finish going through.  Then a lot of hauling stuff to Goodwill needs to be done and we will be finished.  Please, take my advice, and start decluttering now.  You do not want to go through a disaster and be burdened with clutter.  I'm trying my best to only keep things that I love and are meaningful to me.

5.  A smooth work week:  Things went so well this week.  I was struck anew how much I really like my job. Now that I've been doing it so long, I feel like I have a really great schedule worked out so that everything gets done in a timely manner.  The next month is usually one of my busiest times of the year but I'm not dreading it.  I know just what to do and when to do it, and that's a lovely feeling!

That sums up my last week of July!  How did yours go?

Simple Woman's Daybook, July 26, 2011

FOR TODAY, TUESDAY, JULY 26TH

Outside my window...at 6:20 a.m. the not-so-gentle tap-tap-tap of carpenters putting on the last of our new siding on our house!




I am thinking... of how satisfying to finally get the outside of the house remodeled.  What a blessing!




I am thankful... that God always works out things for good.  (See Romans 8:28)




In the kitchen... homemade pizza.  I am so happy that I finally got a menu together to know each day what to fix for dinner.  It takes the pressure off ... and you know, that's a good thing!




I am wearing... a black tank dress with an aqua flowered jacket.  It's made out of my favorite material - so comfy and cool.




I am creating... order in my home.  It's a big job, moving back in!  HOW did we fit all this stuff in our house?  Needless to say, I'm getting a lot of things together to take to Goodwill ....


I am going... to be so happy when all the remodeling/moving back home is over!



I am wondering...what it feels like to not have anything to do after the workday ends ...




I am reading...Book 3 of Lynette Eason's Women of Justice series, "A Killer Among Us."  I adore mysteries, the problem being I can hardly put one down to go to sleep!




I am hoping... to be finished moving by the end of the week.




I am looking forward to...cooler weather.  I'm ready for fall!




I am hearing... the hum of the a/c and the ceiling fans whirring.




Around the house... items still waiting for a place for them to be stored ...




I am pondering...how I had so much stuff in this house!




One of my favorite things... a decluttered area - I could feast my eyes on it all day.




A few plans for the rest of the week: finish unpacking, friends over for dinner Saturday.




Here is a picture for thought I am sharing...

I'm dreaming of reading under a cool shady tree like this one!

The Simple Woman's Daybook is a concept created by Peggy Hostetler.  You can join in with other daybook-ers here at her blog.

Friday's Fave Five #148

Hello everyone!  It's been a long time since I've posted anything since I've been in the middle of flood recovery. Basically, we've had to demo and then rebuild our home. Moving back into our home taught me that it is much easier to move when you are in your twenties than it is when you are in your fifties!

I am living life in the midst of unpacking boxes ... which leaves no time for blogging, photography and road trips. I decided to write a quick blog post today before work since I have missed participating in Susanne's Friday's Favorite Five blog party.

Friday's Favorite Five is an exercise in looking for 5 positive things that happened in your week.  You can always find at least 5 if you are seriously searching for them.

It might interest you to know that I have had many highlights since the flood because God has been blessing us so much!  In future posts, I will be dwelling on this and also covering what I have learned through this experience.

Today, however, there is only time to list 5:

1.  FEMA - this wonderful country of ours has made provision for our citizens when disaster strikes.  I'm definitely thankful for FEMA.  Without them, we would not be able to rebuild our home.

2.  Friends - The willingness of friends to help has been amazing.

3.  Financial Savings - One of the ways God has blessed has been arranging for us to run into great deals for the things we need to rebuild.  Coincidence?  I think not!

4.  Furniture - This may seem shallow, but I've been excited to get a few new pieces of furniture. I've mostly had used furniture all my life - and there's definitely nothing wrong with that - but it is exciting to get something new!

5.  Furnishings - Elissa and I have had a ball redecorating.  It was time to update anyway, and I'm thrilled with our new look.  Hopefully soon I'll have some photos to share. 

I bet you could find 5 highlights from your week.  If you'd like to share, visit Susanne at Living to Tell the Story and link up.