What's Your Point?

Chatty to me and the other three kids while eating lunch today:

"I was talking to Emily at church. We were talking about camouflage and it turned into deer hunting, then we were talking about 8-point and 10-point bucks."

So I asked her if she knew what the points were.

Chatty: "They tell you how big the buck is."

So I asked her if she knew how the points told her how big the buck was.

Chatty: "The bigger the buck, the more points you get."

I was tempted to ask her who awards the points.

She's even watched hunting shows with her dad.

Memorabilia...To Keep Or Not To Keep?

Do you still have stuff in your house from when you were growing up?

How about trophies or plaques?

How about trophies you got as a grown-up...playing sports...like your husband's?

Military moves definitely make you think about your stuff. There are probably some people out there who leave boxes unopened from move to move, but for us, we opened all our boxes. So that meant every time we moved, every thing we owned touched our hands and had to be thought about.

That's a sobering thought.

This last move was our final military move — the big retirement move. So for us, this should be the last time we have to go through all our stuff like that. What it has made me do is really think about everything when I open up the boxes to put things away.

I'm going to use that as my current excuse for why it took me so long to unpack and get settled.

But seriously, if I might never touch this stuff again, do I really want it in my house taking up space.

I've had a box of what I will call memorabilia that has moved around with us since we've been married, so basically almost 24 years. This box has been cardboard, non-see-through Sterilite, see-through Sterilite, cardboard again when the movers broke it...you name it, it's probably had a home there. Here are some of the things that lived in that box.





So just to run through a few of the items:

• Homecoming corsages from Hubby, when he was just a boyfriend and not Hubby yet


• broken plastic trophy from winning the 3rd grade equipment run...I was fast


• second place, fourth grade area math olympics trophy...little flat marble thing


• graduation tassels...high school and college


• graduation hat and gown


• graduation announcement cards...mine and Hubby's


• a little box of souvenirs from church trips to Canada and Washington D.C.


• a Gideon Bible


• a bag of stick pins that were stylish and cute when I was in high school


• cake cutter from wedding


• my letterman sweater from being a smarty


• Hubby's letterman blanket from being a sporty


• my drill team sailor uniform


• my sweatshirt from winning the local Elks Club hoop shoot in 3rd grade


• our wedding cake topper


• a multitude of greeting cards from Hubby to me


• graduation cards to Hubby and me from other people


• gift cards and greeting cards from our wedding...I did enjoy reading the letters again
  

There was more, but that's the bulk of it.

Then we have plaques and trophies. Hubby is the primary trophy owner, I am the primary plaque owner, except for all those military things they give you every time you leave, which makes him about on an even keel with me. The plaques and trophies have taken up two large Sterilite boxes and moved with us over and over and over again. Take a gander at Hubby's trophies.

I started with the box of memorabilia. I threw out the old dead flowers. They were too far gone. I got rid of the old stick pins. They were discolored or missing the backs or completely unnecessary for any memory. Really, there was a lot of junk that I was able to just toss in the trash. My girls had fun trying on my drill team sailor suit that I wore when I was just one grade older than them. I still kept it, but overall the box was pared down.

The trophies on the other hand were an adventure. For the first time ever Hubby told me I could just get rid of them all. Seriously! And I couldn't. Me, the queen of getting rid of stuff couldn't do it.

I read the little plaques on the front and split them up into a keep and toss pile. The ones in the top picture are the keeps, and the ones in the bottom picture are the tosses. I thought about sending the Pepsi can trophy in the bottom picture to Heather, knowing her love of Pepsi, but a guy playing softball on top just didn't quite cut it. Plus the can was dented, taking away any possible monetary value. Oh, I kid. About the monetary value, not about thinking about sending it to her.

The plaques on the other hand were harder. I kept all mine. Every last one. I don't know that anything will ever be done with them, but I couldn't part with them. I kept all of Hubby's too. If he ever gets an office instead of a cubicle he can hang his up. His are from his grown-up years at least.

So we still have two Sterilite boxes holding trophies and plaques, but they are wrapped up much better and not so tightly packed. We also still have the one box with memorabilia, but it is pared down and easy to access if we wanted to reminisce through the items. And just as a note, these are primarily things that could not go in a scrapbook, either due to bulky size or quantity (maybe I'd just pick out a few favorite wedding cards to put in the album).

I also had to cut up Hubby's letterman's jacket. It was due to what we will call 'sticky vinyl issues.' The sleeves where most of the patches were located were vinyl, and they had gotten sticky in a gummy way. I'd cleaned it before but it was just not working anymore, so we decided as a couple to cut off the patches and throw out the jacket. I should say that I would cut off the patches. I actually saved all the jacket except the sleeves, thinking that someday maybe I could have someone put some leather ones on as a replacement, like he's ever going to wear that jacket again. Oh, well.

So that's it for this part of the Organizing Round-Up. Tomorrow I am going to show you what I do with photographs. Yee-haw!

Any one else with memorabilia stories?

This post is linked to The Organizing Junkie's Monthly Organizing Round-Up.

Menu Plan Monday — March 30th-April 5th

I got off track a little last week and get to bring something forward again. Oddly enough, it's one of the new recipes that got brought forward from the previous week, and then the fish. I have all the stuff in my pantry, I just need to make it.

The reason it got bumped...one night we had cereal for dinner and one night we had blueberry muffins. It was kind of an off week.

My kids have asked for 'no new recipes, Mom,' so I'm going to try and work with that, with the exception of the one I already have planned.

Monday — Bacon Cheeseburger Rice. I'll get the new recipe out of the way first thing in the week.

Tuesday — Cheesy Spaghetti Bake. I'm going to make extra noodles and warm up extra sauce for Caboose. He's asked for plain spaghetti even though he liked this recipe, and since it's not really a big deal to throw in extra noodles, I can humor him on this one.

Wednesday — Leftovers. The Cheesy Spaghetti Bake makes two casseroles and it's great as a leftover, so we'll have the second one and make dinner a breeze.

Thursday — Beef and Noodles. Buddy requested this specifically, so I can make him happy, too.

Friday — Leftovers. I make extra of the Beef and Noodles recipe and then I get leftovers for a second night. I love simple!

Saturday — I might do Mahi Mahi or Tilapia here since I never did last week (in a little olive oil on the stove top in a grill pan, heavily seasoned with Mrs. Dash's garlic and herb, lightly seasoned with salt), but I currently reserve the right to change my mind since I haven't bought the fish yet. The girls will be gone for a special youth event, so it will just be Hubby, the boys, and me.

Sunday — Eat out since we ate in all week!

We're having a beef week, unless the fish works out for Saturday. I'm starting to think it's probably a necessity. I don't think I've ever gone a week without making chicken at least once. Maybe some nuggets for lunch...

Go check out all the great menu ideas at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

The Best Of Both Worlds

I live in a suburb of the 11th largest city in the United States. If you'd told me I'd live in the north when I was growing up, much less a big city, I would have laughed at you.

Well, I don't really feel like I live in a big city. There's something about driving on a dirt road to get home that keeps you from that feeling.

This is the road that leads directly to the back of our subdivision, and we like to go this way since our house is one of the first ones. I'd guess our entrance is about a quarter of a mile down once the dirt starts. You can't see it, but some of those potholes right now are about a foot deep, and they've even been worked on by the road department.

The other two sides of the subdivision are also dirt roads, and one of them has a side entrance to the subdivision. The front entrance you can get to by a paved road, although you can still tell you are out in the country.

I took these pictures from different points in the front and middle of our subdivision.


One of the best things — I have seasons — all four of them! And although I am by no means complaining, winter is a bit long here. I think we're working on something like our fifth month right now if November counted, and I think it was cold enough to count. We had some snow flurries that month, so I think that would qualify it.

You look at all of those trees and dirt and farmland, and there are eight to ten Targets within about a 30 minute radius of my house. Four of them alone are within a five to fifteen minute drive. There are an equal number of Wal-Mart stores, the majority of which are Supercenters.

We have professional baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. Zoos, museums, you name it...

It's the best of both worlds.

It's Even Bigger Than I Thought

Here it is...look very big to you?

I laid the Ikea paper tape measure over it and took a picture. Good thing we went on a Tuesday night when there weren't many people there. I should have worn a little name tag that said, "Hello, my name is Kayren. I blog. If you see me take any weird pictures, that's why."

So if you read any blogs out there and they talk about the weird people they saw in the Canton, Michigan, Ikea, it was probably us. Unless their people have colored or unnaturally positioned hair, tattoos, or piercings, then it's someone else.

Okay, so here's the measuring taking place:

I tried to get Hubby to lie down beside it for effect, but he wouldn't. There was no way I would, because I wasn't going to let my hair touch the floor where people's shoes that might have been in a bathroom had walked. He let me very quickly snap this as he picked up the tape measurer.

And just notice that the perfect purse in spring green even looks good when a Hubby is holding it for you.

Now because I don't think you can read those little numbers in the pictures, here is the end of the tape measurer up close:

Those circles are 34"! And I've missed them every time. Every single stinkin' time! Walked against the flow of traffic just as happy and oblivious as you please.

Tuesday night, I went counter-clockwise with the flow of traffic the way the arrows pointed. Hated every minute of it. I felt completely disoriented and confused. I kept thinking I was almost done with the top floor and it kept going. I couldn't tell exactly where I was (halfway through, middle, far wall, etc.). I told Hubby I will not do that again. He thinks I just need to keep practicing, but I don't really think I'm going to get him back enough times to practice.

I was so stressed out by it all I almost forgot the main thing I went for by the time I got to the bottom floor in the self-serve furniture area. If it hadn't been for Hubby I would have, and that's sad, because we'd passed his hour and a half limit and he wasn't doing so well, plus he'd just dropped a box in the middle of his foot. Being thrilled at being at Ikea, the only explanation was having gone the wrong way upstairs.

So I didn't twitch, but internal disturbances are much worse.

Alphabet Meme

Mari did this fun alphabet meme the other day over on her blog, and today seemed like a good day for a little silliness on my part. The alphabet restrictions will keep me in check and hopefully the limits will also keep me from embarrassing myself with my ramblings...not enough coffee has it's drawbacks.

A is for your age: 43
B is for your burger of choice: ketchup and mustard ONLY
C is for the car that you drive: Chevy Venture Van
D is for dog's name: I guess that means the one I'd pick since I don't have one. I'll go with Sam. Hubby's last dog he had growing up was Trouble, and we babysat one long-term when I was about five or six years old whose name was GiGi.
E is for an essential item you use each day: My glasses
F is for your favorite television show: Clean House
G is for favorite game: I'm competitive, so one I have an advantage at over the other players, or else a single player game, like Sudoku. Okay, Dutch Blitz if I'm playing with my kids, but they can beat me, too.
H is for hometown: Mountain Home
I is for instruments played: Piano and Handbells

J is for favorite juice: Orange juice (the kind my great-grandma used to have when I was growing up tasted like the Sunny D they have today...I still remember that specific taste)
K is for what you'd like to kick: um, all the stuff in my garage waiting for a garage sale out to the street?
L is for last restaurant you dined at: Does Steak 'n Shake count as a restaurant?
M is for your favorite muppet: Probably Miss Piggy
N is for number of piercings you have: One in each ear, although I never wear earrings anymore.
O is for overnight hospital stays: Counting myself and my children...9...a knee surgery when I was 13, tonsillectomy when I was 25, three births for four children, staying with the girls when they had to go on the pediatric floor with RSV from the ICN before they ever left the hospital, Chatty for her liver surgery two times, Buddy when he was readmitted at 10 days old with ear infections in both ears...I think that's it. It doesn't count the extra days I stayed pre-delivery with the girls or all the times at the Ronald McDonald Houses.
P is for people you were with today: My immediate family
Q is for what you do in quiet times: Read, pray, and work on the computer
R is for regrets: How late I slept this morning...it made my day start badly.

S is for status: I assume this means married, but other than that, low man on the totem pole.
T is for time you woke up today: I'm too embarrassed to say.
U is for what you consider unique: How I can have such curly hair and no one else in my family does, but then I have a couple of kids with blue eyes, and one of them has very bright ones. We all have the unique handprint of God.
V is for favorite vegetable: I wish fruit started with V. I guess green beans.
W is for your worst habit: I'm probably with Mari on this one, procrastination.
X is for x-rays you have had: At any point in my life I think I have them all covered except for my skull, although they probably shot through it when they did the MRI of my spine a few years ago when my arm was paralyzed, and my feet.
Y is for yummy food you ate today: Nothing yummy yet, although I still have buttercream frosting in my fridge!
Z is for zoo animal: Giraffe

Memory Monday

I dug out some of my colored unlined 3 x 5 index cards, picked yellow since they seemed to be the ones not used for anything else, hole punched the corner in a little so it wouldn't tear easily, and then used a ring binder to hold them together. I put this week's verse on top.

It can go anywhere with me now, I can add verses week by week, and it makes reviewing previous weeks super easy. I don't want to memorize verses and passages and then forget them, so I'd like to review every so often. I'm going to go back this week and add the verses I've done in prior weeks, plus adding the ones for the upcoming week(s). It's a passage, and I will put each verse on a card by itself so I can learn one verse at a time. I'd rather do one or two than none.

So for this week, from memory:

Psalm 119:9
How can a young man keep his way pure?
By living according to your word.

I picked that verse following the Proverbs I memorized from chapter 4, verses 20-27. For next week I will start working on Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

You can click on the Memory Monday link at the top to go to The Simple Wife.

Menu Plan Monday — March 23rd-29th

There's good and bad in not getting around to fixing everything from the previous week's menu. The good is that I have less to plan for and buy for this week. The bad is that we ate out one extra time (on Saturday) and I had some complainers about leftovers.

So that's primarily what happened. The dishes I made at the beginning of the week were bigger and we had leftovers...lots. It's hard for me to plan those in, especially if it's a new recipe and I just don't know exactly how much food it's going to make and how well it's going to go over. Then on Saturday we had the Awana games, and we decided to go eat at Steak 'n Shake after they were over as a treat.

All of that means I get to pull three things from last week forward to this week, and that makes planning a little easier. What's not to like about that?

Monday — Tacos.

Tuesday — Taco Salad. We use the leftover taco meat from taco night. Recipe at the bottom of the post.

Wednesday — Bacon Cheeseburger Rice. One of the new recipes from last week that I didn't get around to making.

Thursday — Potato Bacon Chowder. Another new recipe from last week that got bumped. I'd better make it soon, because it's getting into the 40's and 50's occasionally here and it might be too hot soon! Maybe I'm acclimating.

Friday — Mahi Mahi or Tilapia. We cook this in a grill pan on the stovetop in olive oil generously seasoned with Mrs. Dash's garlic and herb and a touch of salt. We usually get the fish frozen at Sam's Club, and we haven't seen the Mahi Mahi in a while, so we'll probably have to settle for the Tilapia. I'm also going to put aluminum foil on the areas of my stovetop that I'm not using and see if that helps keep it cleaner while I'm cooking. A few weeks ago was really a bear and I'm not looking forward to repeating it.

Saturday — Fettucine Alfredo.

Sunday — Eat out since we ate in all week, and hope all my kids are finally well!

Taco Salad

taco meat
one can chili beans
low-fat Italian salad dressing
chopped tomato
shredded cheese
one bag lettuce
Tostitos

Warm up taco meat and chili beans. Add chopped tomato, shredded cheese to taste, one bag of pre-cut and pre-washed lettuce. Toss with low-fat Italian salad dressing to your personal taste. We serve it with Tostitos.

Next week I'm going to try and add lunches to my menu planning. I think it might help things go even smoother for us during the week.

Go visit Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie for hundreds of recipe ideas.

I Caved

I really was going to live with those pictures over my bed and be happy with them. I was convinced I could do it. But I was wrong.

I did not want to spend a lot of money matting or special framing these little prints, even thought they are really nice. I think that's why I was trying to convince myself they were okay.

Friday, following the goose incident and an unplanned trip to the Chevrolet body shop, I caved in and went by Michael's just to see what they had in the way of frames with mats already included. I would need 11 x 14 frames with 8 x 10 mats.

You know what I didn't know...Michael's sells a pretty nice little selection of pre-cut standard-sized mats, and some of them are even double mats. I found three black ones with the white cut marks showing for a little accent color, and three larger frames on sale (I love Michael's sales).

You saw the two before pictures, now here are the two after pictures:

They are so much better.

As for the questions the other day, the light will hang from the middle of the bedroom ceiling, and I plan on white cotton panels on black iron rods.

It's A Good Thing I'm Not A Pilot

Hubby has been commenting that spring is in the air, because the Canadian Geese are migrating back to Canada via their apparent Michigan migration path.

Of course some of them will be with us all spring, summer, and fall, and now I'm not terribly excited about that. Because today when a Canadian Goose should have been doing this in the median when I was preparing to get in the lane to make a Michigan left,

(which for all of you who aren't privy to the knowledge of what that is, consider yourself lucky, but just know that it means I'd just made a right off of one road to get in the left hand lane and make a u-turn to get on the other road, and basically I wasn't going fast), he, or she, was doing this

right about here.

That's the beautiful duct tape job the body shop did at the Chevrolet place that just happened to be not even a quarter of a mile up the road from the little goose smacking incident. Wasn't so little though. My mirror was hanging off by only the electrical cord and was slapping against the side of the van.

Body shop guy said the goose hit it so hard that when the mirror folded in that it folded too far and snapped. I didn't even know it was possible to fold in your mirrors too far.

So I purchased a used mirror that will be delivered to my house (to save a little money rather than the shop buying it) and then I just take it by and they put it on for the small fee they would have charged me to put it on anyway.

My deductible is too large for my insurance to cover it.

Said goose was still alive with two friends when I drove off, even standing.

We haven't replaced the other vehicle since the accident, so we just have the van right now. This was the only day this week I had taken Hubby to work so I could use the van during the day. I think I'm going to become like Jessica Fletcher from Murder, She Wrote and just give up driving all together and be chauffeured from now on.

I didn't even know they made red duct tape.

Because normal silver would have actually matched my van a little.

Spring Reading Thing — 2009

I just looked back at my Fall Into Reading list to see how I did, even though I had a general idea, but I did even stinkier than I thought on my non-fiction. When I made out my list last fall I didn't take into account that we would be moving from our temporary apartment into our new house at some point during that three months, but I can't even use that as an excuse. I still haven't finished most of those non-fiction books. I like fiction too much, I can only read fiction when I go to bed, and I don't get enough reading time during the day, especially since I only unpacked my last box a week ago, and we moved in in the middle of November.

So for the spring event I'm going to try and make a conscious effort to find wasted time during my day to read some non-fiction. I know it's there; I just have to find it and be willing to give it up. I know I'll be happy once I do, but it's the initial sacrifice that is often the most painful.

not quite all books mentioned are pictured

Fiction

1. O'Malley Chronicles Volume 2 by Dee Henderson. This book includes The Protector, The Healer, and The Rescuer. I'm partway through The Protector, so I'll finish up this entire book before I start any more fiction.
2. Yukon Quest by Tracie Peterson. This is a 3-in-1 book I got for under ten dollars from CBD and was on my fall list. I ended up reading some other fiction books rather than this and still haven't gotten to it. It's back on my list and I plan to read it this spring.
3. Everything's Coming Up Josey, Chill Out, Josey, and Get Cozy, Josey by Susan May Warren. These books were on someone's list last fall and they looked really cute, I'd read other books by Susan May Warren that were good, and my grandma's first name was Josie. I had to get the first one from Amazon Marketplace around Christmas because you can't find it anywhere else right now, but the other two are on their way right now from CBD.
4. The Sisters of the Quilt Series by Cindy Woodsmall. This includes When the Heart Cries, When the Morning Comes, and When the Soul Mends. I won an autographed copy of the third book last fall, found the second book at Sam's Club a couple of weeks ago, and the first one is on it's way from CBD. That way I can read them in order.
5. Altar Call by Hope Lyda. I won this last fall also, and it came from Smiling Sally. I never got around to thanking her with the big move coming soon after, so if she happens to read this, "Thanks, Sally!"
6. The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart. I read the first book for Fall Into Reading, now on to this one.
7. Wicked by Gregory Maguire. I'm just curious about this one.
8.when Mother was eleven-foot-four by Jerry Camery Hoggatt. I can't find any links except to the children's version. This is a little Christmas book, but I'm going to read it now since I didn't get it done during Christmas.
9. City of the Dead by T.L. Higley. This is the second book in the Seven Wonders Series, but since the author was kind enough to give me the book, I'm going to read it before I get the first one and read it. It's hard for me to do things out of order, so we'll see if I my eyelids twitch while I'm reading it! I'm really excited to read this book though.

Non-Fiction

1. The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace. This was on my fall list and I didn't get to it. I really want to read this, so I don't know why I can't seem to pick it up. Scared, maybe.
2. Have a New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Leman. On my list in the fall, needed it then, need it now. Priority book!
3. The Consolations of Imperfection: Learning to Appreciate Life's Limitations by Donald McCullough. Another one from my fall list. I got mine highly discounted from CBD after seeing it on someone's What's On Your Nightstand list. I can't recommend it since I haven't read it, but it's marked down right now from $18.99 to $1.99 if you think it's one you want (that's the member price).
4. Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate by Jerry Bridges. Another one pulled over from my fall list. I told you I didn't do well with my non-fiction.
5. The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges.

Devotionals

1. Mocha on the Mount by Sandra Glahn. I started this but stalled out. I'm going to finish it up. Anything where I have to write is like pulling teeth for me. I just really have trouble with those types of devotionals.
2. The Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson. I didn't let myself get to this from my fall list since I didn't finish Mocha on the Mount. I don't know that this is truly a devotional, but I'm going to try using it to start my days.
3. Before You Meet Prince Charming: A Guide to Radiant Purity by Sarah Mally. I've already read this before, but I've purchased copies for both of my girls and will be going through this with them. This book is not just about remaining pure for marriage, but also 'equipping young ladies to use the years of their youth fully for Christ.' Personally I think this is a fantastic book.

I don't even want to think about the kids' school books I'll be reading...

Katrina hosts this wonderful event at Callapidder Days. I love checking out what other people are reading because I can find some new books to put on my list to read someday. If you love to read, go check it out!

Tour The House — The Master Bedroom (My Other Favorite Room)

Welcome to Builder Beige! We're glad to see you again.

I sure wish I had this room painted. At least I know what color I want to paint it...a really nice light blue.

Guess what else. Standard light fixtures reign here, too. I think I've picked what I want here though, which is better than most other rooms.

What do you think?

Maybe I should show you the room first before I ask you that. I'll start at the door and do something of a panorama.

That's the bathroom door you see over there.

I was standing over in the corner by the glass-door bookshelf when I took this picture of the dresser. The bedroom door where I started is just to the left of the dresser.

The little black round tables I knew I wanted all along instead of the standard nightstands. I got these at Target, and that's where I got the lamps and shades, too.

So for some details now. The cross-stitch on the chest of drawers is the first one I ever attempted on linen. It's counted cross-stitch and from a kit. I altered it slightly because I didn't put a square border around it that was on the original pattern. I don't use a hoop when I cross-stitch on Aida or evenweave cloth; I just hold it in my hands. I purchased a special lap stand when I did this piece to hold the linen taut. I've used it several times since then and love it for uneven weaves.

We just hung the pictures over our bed two nights ago. I'm not totally convinced they are the best thing for over the bed, but I'm okay with them for now. My main concern is if they are big enough. Of course I don't have any window treatments up, so that would change the whole look. I might get some large black grosgrain ribbon, hot glue it to the back of the frames and pretend that they are each hanging from a knob on the wall. That will give them a little more presence. These pictures are all historic buildings from Colonial Williamsburg.

When we went for our first big Ikea trip in November, the one where we pulled the trailer, we found that glass-front bookcase on clearance. We weren't specifically looking for one, but at our house we can always use bookcases, and I'll just tell you right now that all of them are pretty much full, so it was a good call.

When we got it, we weren't totally sure where it was going. We thought it might go in our room right where it ended up, but we also thought it might be going right outside our room in what's called the second floor loft. We tried it in our room first and loved it there, so it stayed.

When we decided to buy the bookcase, even though we weren't sure where it was going, I knew that some of my very favorite books were going to be the ones that took up permanent residence inside. The whole thing doesn't photograph as pretty as it really is in person.

Leather-bound Lamplighter books.

Vintage Nancy Drew.

Also by Carolyn Keene, vintage Dana Girls.

When Monica visited in December and we spent our fun-filled day at Ikea, one of my goals was to find something for our TV to sit on in our bedroom. At the time it was sitting on the corner of our dresser, but it really didn't look good. It also needed to be on something taller since our furniture is rather large. There was a matching piece to the clearance bookcase that fit the bill perfectly, and now it is nestled in the corner. You'll have to go back and look at the picture at the top though.

The other thing I had been looking for for months was a duvet cover. I have never had such trouble finding something that seemed so simple, but then when you have in your mind exactly what you want it is always harder to find it.

All I wanted was a simple white cotton duvet cover. It needed to be in a higher thread count so it would be soft, not sateen and shiny, not the kind with tone-on-tone stripes, and no block pattern in another color around it. I also wanted it to have a slightly 'messy' look, kind of comfortable-ish and not all fixed and fussy. Finally I found one at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and not only did I find white, I found a khaki and very light blue on sale...in my size, king! I've had the white on my bed until about a week ago when I changed from my 4-weight duvet to my 2-weight duvet and decided to go with the light blue. I think I'll do khaki in the fall. Or when I get bored.

My queen-sized pillows still look a little scrawny though. I might have to get some bigger ones...a little at a time.

This is the only bedroom furniture we've had since we've been married other than our original bedroom set. That last box I unpacked had some pictures of our first apartment and our bedroom furniture, so I scanned them so you could see.

We didn't even have this footboard for the last two or three moves since the movers broke the side pieces. We had been using a metal bed frame and attaching it to the headboard, and the last move we had to use bungee cords to help hold it on. We're talking a lot of moves after 23 years of marriage.

We sold the dresser and chest of drawers at our yard sale before we left Virginia. The nightstand we hadn't had for several moves either because we didn't have room for it.

The one thing I said I refused to do when we finally had room was to not put things under our beds anymore. Sometimes it's the little things I am so thankful for.

So, what do you think about the light choice for the ceiling?