right now.

as i sit editing photos at the far end of our family room, i often have the tv on, but i’m not necessarily “watching”. if i hear something i’m interested in, i may stop and pay attention. lots of times, i’ll have the tv on sirius radio and be listening to the gospel or r & b stations. but i must admit that i am somewhat addicted to hgtv. a few days ago, i had the tv on “dear genevieve” on hgtv. i wasn’t paying much attention at first, but as they were talking i had to look and see what was going on. this couple had put an addition on their home 10 years ago and had never finished it. they hadn’t been able to agree on a plan for decorating it, so they were living every day with a completely unfinished bedroom. i was appalled….but then i started thinking about the things i’m living with in my own home that aren’t finished. sure, the show was to the extreme, but i couldn’t help but think about the ruts that i’ve gotten into and don’t even see anymore. it made me realize that i need to see my own projects to completion. not with an instant gratification mindset, but with a plan to see my vision through.

all this makes me think about something that i try to live by always….but don’t always succeed at. i intend to live each day paying attention to little details that mean something to me. i don’t want to live my life on hold “until this happens or that happens” and then i can start living. i get lazy sometimes and don’t take time to live intentionally. but when i do, i find myself frustrated and don’t really know why. so i am going to be mindful today….lighting candles, playing good music, having an afternoon cup of tea in my favorite antique cup, etc….those little things make a huge difference to me. PLUS, i’m going to make a point of finishing up my unfinished projects. this really motivates me to get my house in order. not just decluttered, but set up the way i want it. not putting off what i can do RIGHT NOW. there are so many things that we can do right now and then move on.

last night, i did finish the last of 8 layouts for a scrapbooking challenge i gave myself. i did this last winter and found it to be extremely gratifying. it was even more gratifying this year! i can’t wait to share the details with you tomorrow!

this past weekend, tom and i went to one of the local antique malls that we enjoy perusing. i love that tom gets the way that i am about antiquing. i don’t like to talk a lot when i’m looking. plus, i like to be sort of a loner as i look. it’s a real escape for me. i like to be able to think and process how i would incorporate the things i see in my own home or art projects. i am easily distracted, so i don’t like to chitchat continuously. i enjoy shopping with others in the sense that it’s fun to come together after looking around and share ideas and get input from tom or my friends. so i’m not a total antiquing loner!

i found some really fun things friday and saturday! i’ll be sharing photos when i get them cleaned up and in place. i did make the time to get these beauties where i wanted them yesterday-

oh how i love them! i am thrilled when i find something so simple and inexpensive that makes me this happy!

i think it fits in really well with my other collections. i do have collections.

here’s something that is so simple, but i don’t always take the time for-

this winter we’ve been eating a lot of oranges and grapefruit. plus, i’ve been using lemons and limes in many of the new recipes i’ve been trying, so i try to use the “ends” for my drinks. i always wash the whole fruit super thoroughly with my fruit/veggie wash. depending on the restaurant, i will or won’t ask for lemon or lime in my drink, because of my paranoia about the cleaniliness….as much as i love a good citrus twist.

one more thing. this weekend, i did a quick happy valentine’s blog post and shared that we had seen the movie- valentine’s day. the day after we saw it, tom and i were talking about it and i shared how much ashton kutcher still reminds me of jared. in the opening scene, when ashton’s character gets out of bed and has on sports shorts and a t-shirt, it blew me away! his casual attitude, easy smile and mannerisms remind me soooo much of my boy! makes me like ashton much more! when brooke was young, we had a summer when everywhere we went, people thought she was drew barrymore. so i guess both of my kids have a celebrity twin!

tomorrow, i’ll be sharing my layouts with a challenge for you as well as a *b* list!

have a great monday!

God bless!