My passion has taken a backseat to life

Life has been chaotic around here lately.  As I organized folders on my computer I came across some photos I took this past fall. I think that was close to the last time I even picked up my camera.  Then again, I let photography go by the way side every year about this time because I am more of a nature photographer. Let's face it--dreary days, brown grass, no leaves, no flowers equals no inspiration for photos. Here are some of my photos from October that will hopefully get me pumped up for spring peeking around the corner.

My mom has such creativity in her yard. Definitely my favorite place to shoot!

Captured this on the railing of our deck.

The sun glimmering through the trees at some nature paths near our home were beautiful.

Again..I just love my parent's new home. Talk about inspiration!

I should be used to this!

Our current home. Hate to leave it but better things are to come!

My husband and I have been married for almost 11 years.  As I talked about in posts last year, we have lived in four different places since we married.  We are attempting to make that five places in 11 years.  We have simply tried to find a place to settle that suits us. We now know where we belong and are attempting to get back to Indianapolis.  Of course this economy is not the greatest for selling, however our greater obstacle is the specific wish list of people in this small town.  Most people that look at our house want the basement finished, a fourth bedroom, and are scared as to what will be built behind our house (just more of the subdivision).  Sorry, not going to finish the basement only to have to raise the price of our house to recoup at least part of that expense. We can't change the fact that we only have 3 bedrooms.  Lastly, we live in a subdivision! So, yes, more houses will be built behind us at some point.  Really---I should be used to this!

When my mind wonders I think about the actual moving process and I start freaking out. Actually moving your stuff is never pleasant, but to do it for the fifth time in 11 years is ridiculous.  We have made a commitment that our next move is our last for at least 10-15 years.  We love Indianapolis and can't wait to get back. All the details are enough to drive anyone insane.  Do we try to buy as soon as we sell? Do we rent and then take our time looking? Do we build? what school will our daughter go to? What sports or activities will be available for our daughter?  What church will we join?  Whew! 

We have everyone asking us if we are house hunting yet.  Simple answer: Heck no!  Why?  When we sold the last house we owned we moved out before closing because it was 'possession at closing'.  So we packed up our stuff and moved over an hour away and got settled about 10 days before closing. There was no indication anything would stop the closing.  Wrong! 36 hours before we were to close on our home the deal fell through because the buyers couldn't close on their home.  We were devastated. We now had to continue to take care of an empty home one hour away.  Two months later we finally got a solid closing.  I will not go through that again. I will be sure we close on our home before we move.

Again..I should be used to this!  However, my nerves are never used to this. If you have a sold a house before you should understand.  You get a phone call telling you that you have a showing in 24-48 (or less) and you then scramble to get the house cleaned.  I also have a 6 year old coming behind me making even more messes. Showings themselves are not easy either when you also have to  get two big dogs out of the house.  At the same time moving causes anxiety (as it would to any normal person), it is also an adventure and will improve our lives dramatically. Life is a roller coaster and I have learned to trust that it will all work out the way it should. I have to have faith that it will sell in 2013. I should be used to this!

DIY coaster project

At the beginning of the year I vowed to keep up with my blog.  I didn't, however, anticipate the dreadful flu.  I took care of my daughter for a week as she came down with it hard and now this week I had to take care of myself. For anyone wondering--yes, we did get flu shots. That last two weeks are a blur and I really did lose track of my days.  However, right before we both got sick we completed a project for my mother-in-law's birthday.  Pinterest is an obsession of mine and I capture every opportunity to try out a recipe or project from the site.  I came across a cute do-it-yourself project for coasters.  I thought it was simply adorable and a perfect birthday gift for my mother-in-law.

Homemade coasters:

I used a standard paintbrush, clear standard size tiles (bought individually at home depot for about $.13 a piece), a tool for pressing out bubbles, and Mod Podge (I used the hard finish type).

 
I coated the tile with a thin layer of the Mod Podge and also coated the back of a regular picture that I cut to fit the tile. For this project I used pictures of my mother-in-law's five grandchildren--one grandchild on each tile for a total of five coasters.

I used a tool like this one (it is actually a kitchen tool that I found that I have never used for food purposes) to flatten out the picture and make sure all the bubbles were gone from underneath the picture.

I then added a thin coat of the Mod Podge over the top of the picture. Don't worry--it dries clear.  I allowed that layer to dry for about 20 minutes.  I then put on an additional 4-5 thin coats of the Mod Podge to ensure the picture stayed and to ensure that the coating was hard enough so the coasters can really be used.

This is the finished product of one of the coasters. I added little sticker felt circles to bottom of the tile so that it wouldn't scratch surfaces (I forgot to take a picture of this step).  You can also use cork cut to size and glued to the back with a spray adhesive.  I stacked the coasters on top of one another and tied with a ribbon.  They were a hit and she loved them! The coating is hard and thick yet clear and can be used as real coasters. I will definitely do this again for someone else or even for myself.