Today & gratitude day 29

6:30am: someone had second thoughts on those boots and left them in the produce section….  I was shopping for veggies and spices for a spice veggie soup….the plan was to let it simmer for a few hours while I do a little painting…

7:30am: throwing out hay on this super chilly 27 degree morning for the horses… Mr. Marbles likes to inspect all the fresh hay….

8am: ooooh la la! Getting so close to having our kitchen done !!! Just painting the backsplash and electrical cabinets today and tomorrow!

9:30am: viola! Saving the electrical cabinet for tomorrow after the plumbers leave…

11:30am: happy ducks in a warm little outdoor bath… 

Noonish: the horses have a belly full of hay and are napping in the sun’s warmth…

4:30pm: spicy veggie soup… mmmmm

6:30pm: our little dining nook/ communal work space 

7:30pm: isn’t she lovely?! I know the trends are all what-washed farmhouse chic, but you all know I do my own thang! This is an actual farm house, and this is the product of sweat and learning new things and making mistakes and feeling so grateful that I was able (physically and financially) to do this! It was not easy by any means and completely unplanned which created so many difficulties, but after tomorrow we will (if all goes as planned) have a fully functional kitchen for the first time in FOUR MONTHS! 

It’s late (10:30), and I just walked Reece. I’m cold and my back is achey and I’m off to bed… 

xoxo

-s

So close!!! Gratitude days 27 & 28

 Oh my! We have been working our tails off on getting the kitchen finished the last two days and I was so tired and sore and spent yesterday that I didn’t even post…  

Here’s yesterday’s photos:

My solution to the ugly wire chaos in he kitchen… 

And Christian and I both learned hot to use a jigsaw last night. We had to. Some things just need a smaller blade than a reciprocator saw… 

And here is the kitchen right this very minute:

Eeeeeeeeeeek! So close to being done! Tomorrow I’ll take the sink out (it’s just sitting in the hole right now) and pressure wash it. Then Thursday the plumbers are coming back out to hook her up! 

There is still a lot to do, but seeing it look like a kitchen again is so exciting!!! 

Here is my sweet cozy Reece… it’s so cold already and he’s snuggled up ready for dreamland…

That’s all I got for tonight. I’m pooped. Grateful for Christian for learning some of this stuff with me when he’s had the time and grateful for this dog… I’ve started noticing little grey whiskers. It’s hard to believe he’s been here almost 5 years. 

Goodnight world! 

xoxo

-s

PTO + gratitude day 26

 As I sit here at the end of another day, sipping some Mexican hot chocolate and getting ready to watch another episode of “Wild Palms” (yes, hooked now -ha!), I was thinking about how this time of year I would countdown the days until I had almost two weeks paid time off for Christmas…. And how I haven’t missed that ”gift” in two years. I haven’t needed a lump of days off to make me feel better about life. When you work for yourself, you don’t really get any paid time off, but the trade off is that you actually like the work you are doing. Now don’t get me wrong - some people have been able to land jobs in very fulfilling positions, working for others. Teachers for example, they dedicate their lives to help kids become educated adults ready for the real world. That’s admirable! Anyone who goes to college to gain higher education in a field that they actually intend to work in is admirable. However, my generation was taught to go to college because it would help you get a better paying in job. Basically just go be a robot for someone with that college degree. I didn’t attend college. Not one day. Never enrolled, never missed not going either. To be honest, I don’t have any friends that didn’t go to college, and I’m just realizing this… how strange. Anyway, I got lost in late night rambling and my point is that although my work doesn’t give me the financial security (yet) that my old decades long career once did, I am fulfilled knowing the work I do is satisfying, and the bills get paid. In my case it’s a little art, a little dog-walking, a little hustle here and a little hustle there. I honestly never dread going to work, although sometimes I get a little overwhelmed when other things need attention (like this house for example the last few months)…. perhaps that lure of PTO that I cherished for decades was just that. A lure. It worked until I didn’t need a that little “something to look forward to” to distract me from the fact that I wasn’t happy at that job…. 

Today I am grateful for all of my clients that have trusted me with their cats and dogs (and horses, chickens, and goats) while they travel. My business has steadily grown over the last year and I can’t articulate how meaningful that is. All through word of mouth - the most genuine form of advertising, and that means everything  to me!

Good night lovelies!

xo 

-s

Well rested. Gratitude day 25

It’s late and it has been a good day consisting of prepping soaps to be labeled for the market, the shelter dog class, some dog-walking, and we ended the day by watching some old 90s show called ‘Wild Palms’ .. eh, it’s pretty good in a weird campy Twin Peaks kind of way. 

I haven’t done any work on the house since Wednesday, and don’t plan on getting back at it until Christian goes back to work Monday. I’m learning that when it comes to big house projects that neither of us have zero idea of what we’re doing, it’s best to just figure it out myself rather than have two people who don’t know what they are doing (ha!) trial and error-ing. I also have a little bit of an engineer mindset and and actually pretty good at figuring things out, annnnnd I am not afraid to reach out to folks and ask questions who know better than I do. That along with my natural inclination to problem-solve means projects like these have a good chance of getting done properly if I do them solo and don’t lose steam - and I can lose my temper with myself and not hurt anyone’s feelings if I’m home alone - bahahahahah!  

That being said, Christian has gone out of his way to make sure I’ve gotten as many hours of sleep as I want and need the last several days he’s been home from work. Ya see, Spirulina and Poptart have both decided that around 4am they want to cause a ruckus. Meaning that Spirulina is f*%king with Poptart, and because Poptart can’t see, it becomes a game of hide and seek that is too much to sleep through - Poptart running around the house blindly chasing the scattering of a cat…. I swear these animals are testing my patience sometimes… anyway, Christian has been regulating the situation before it gets too loud, meaning Poptart goes back to sleep and Spirulina doesn’t get so amped up at 4am. Which means I get to sleep til 7 !!! I should also note that I am pretty much a monster if my sleep is disturbed, no lie. 

Here are a few pics from the day in no particular order, and the countdown to the Holy Crapola There-Is-Too-Much-To-Do-And-Not-Enough-Hours-In-The-Days period has begun. The next 10 days will be pure hustle mode while I finish up the kitchen, go on a little time sensitive road trip looking for a vehicle for a new business venture, and finish prepping for the Indie South market. It is also my busiest season for dog-walking and pet-sitting. Annnnnnnnd my house isn’t decorated yet for Christmas. 

Good night all you pretty things…

xo

-s

Oh! Gratitude post!! Today I am grateful for the community of animal rescue/ shelter animals I work with each week. It’s easy to take it all for granted because it is such regular work, but the network of folks who pitch in and truly make a difference in the lives of these animals makes such a difference. And when I get burned out, their efforts lighten the load and help me gather my bearings so that I can keep doing what I do…

<3