Giveaway: Rebecca St. James’ New Release!!!

On April 5, Rebecca St. James will release a brand new CD entitled “I Will Praise You”.  This is her first studio project since 2005 and let me tell you, it is absolutely beautiful!  I’ve been listening to it ever since I opened it! 

You can join Rebecca’s Listening Party and share a preview of this CD with your family and friends!  Or, you can visit her site and listen to more of her music.  I can’t wait to hear what you think! :)

Now for the fun part! 

I get to host a giveaway for a CD of “I Will Praise You” right here!  This is how you can enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post.  Any old comment.
2. Add your beautiful face to my follower widget, or let me know you already follow.  (Let me know in a separate comment.)
3. Share about my giveaway on your blog, face book page, etc, then let me know you did so in another comment.

That’s THREE chances total for you to win! 

You have from now till Sunday at midnight to spread the word and enter.  I will be picking a winner from the comments at that time using Random.Org and will announce the winner Monday.  Please leave your email address in the comment if your blog is not linked already to a valid email.  That way I’ll have a way to get in touch with you if you win.

Good luck!

As a side note, you can also catch Rebecca on "Hannity" as part of The Great American Panel, Tuesday, April 5th at 9:00pm Eastern/8:00pm Central on FOX News. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of the CD for free in the hope that I would mention it here.  Rest assured, though, that I only recommend things I really like or use, and believe would be something you would enjoy or use as well.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Some Things To Be Thankful For

Although the local news is gradually moving on to other headlines, many families are still working through what happened Friday at the middle school. 

Even so, there is much to be thankful for:

• Thankfully, the 15-year-old boy who was shot has made it through two major surgeries.  Today, he was upgraded from critical to serious.  Praise the Lord!  Keep him and his family in prayer!  His road to recovery will be a very long one.
• The shooting took place at the door to the cafeteria, where the entire student body was gathering to await the first bell.  And only one student was physically harmed.  Thank you Lord!  It could have been so much worse.
• My boys are talking about the scary things they saw and heard, instead of keeping things bottled up inside.  Which is good, EVEN if it gives ME nightmares in the process.
• They have spring break this week which gives families a little extra time to work up the courage to face school again. 
• Soccer started last week.  So we have a welcome distraction and a great outlet to run off some stress.  I might just have to join them.  (Wouldn’t they be surprised!) 
• All in all, we are doing well.  And I SO appreciate all the prayers going up from family and friends.       

On a lighter note, my boys must not be as traumatized as their mama.  Because they were pretty put-out with me for not letting them have an air soft war tonight.  Call me a crazy mom.  But the thought of them dressing up like the swat guys that had to walk them to the rest room Friday just doesn’t sit well with me.

I’m not sure when or even if it ever will again.

The tragedy makes me ultra sensitive to our culture’s casual take on violence as entertainment.  I know air soft guns are toys.  And video games are just that.  Games.  But just because our culture says it’s the “in” thing for teens to do, doesn’t make it right.  Or edifying.  Or even healthy.  Exposure breeds callousness.     

I’ve always been careful about what I let the boys be involved in, especially on the video game front.  We don’t allow them to play or even watch the more violent games.  And it has put them in a tough spot with some of their friends. 

But I figure, if there is enough questionable material that it has to be rated T for Teen, or M for Mature, we simply don’t need to feed it to our brains.  And I’ve been really, really proud of their holding to our rule, even when they are over at their friends’ houses.  I know it isn’t easy.

To be honest, I’m not sure which is harder:  Parenting teenagers, or being one. 

If you have teenagers, or have already made it though this stage of parenting, I sure would appreciate any words of advice you can offer.  Sometimes, I feel incredibly inadequate.  And all I can do is pray that God will lead us through another day.

Hug Your Children

My 13 year old son called this morning from a friend’s cell phone shortly after 7:00. 

“Mom,” he said, “There was a shooting here at school.  The SWAT guys are here and we’re all on lock down.”

“Are you O.K.?

“Yeah.”

“Where are you?”

“Uh, (commotion) …we’re in the cafeteria.  But we’re being herded into the hallway.”  He said. 

“Is your brother with you?  Can you see him?”

“Yeah, he’s O.K.”

“Is D—(a close friend) with you?”

“Yeah.”

“And you are all O.K.?”

“Yeah.”

“Do what the teachers tell you, and keep me informed.”

“O.K.”  And then he hung up. 

My husband hadn’t left for work yet and we turned on the local radio station to find out more.  The announcer was just getting information on the shooting and giving out sketchy details.  He announced that a Lifeline had been dispatched to the school, and would be arriving shortly.

I was SO glad to have just spoken with my son.  It would have been impossible not to panic, had he not called.

For the next three hours, we and other parents waited anxiously.    It’s a situation that you never dream will happen in your town.  Let alone your child’s school. 

Parents who hadn’t heard anything were frantic to get to the school.  But of course, you couldn’t get anywhere near the street, much less the building.  So we waited at home in front of the T.V., alternating watching coverage with listening for new information from the radio.  Waiting for word of when and where we could go and pick up our children.

I can’t describe to you how it feels to helplessly watch as SWAT guys in full riot gear patrol the roof of your children’s school. 

At 1:00, we were finally allowed to go to the school and pick up the boys.  The scene was one I’ll never forget.

We are SO thankful our own boys are safe.  But we are also heartbroken for the families involved in this tragedy.

One student shot another twice in the stomach, and the entire community is reeling. 

Our church is holding a special prayer meeting tonight.   Students and their families are encouraged to attend.

Pray for the boy who was shot.  I’m hearing at this point that he is out of surgery and in stable but critical condition.  Pray for his family.  For his friends.  For the many students in shock.  And for the teachers and administrators.

And pray for the shooter.  These two families (and many others) will never be the same.

Then hug your kids. 

What’s The Craziest Use For A Baby Stroller You Can Think Of?

We bought this beautiful Evenflow stroller new for my youngest son and we absolutely loved it.  It was a dream to push, and the screen, which you could pull down and clip to the tray, was awesome for evening walks.  It kept the mosquitoes circling instead of biting, plus it made it harder for him to toss his toys overboard.  Lol!

Sadly, in the course of cleaning out for our Office-To-Bedroom Transformation, I decided to sell it. 

I went over it thoroughly to make sure it was clean and ready for a new baby.  Then I listed it on Craig’s List.

In no time at all, I had someone arrange to come pick it up. 

With mixed emotions about letting it (and this stage of life) go, I opened the door to a young couple.

They immediately exclaimed how perfect it was.  (Of course.)

I handed her the instruction manual and started to explain why the car seat latches were removed and carefully stored in a baggie.  But the young woman shook her head.  “Don’t worry about it.” she said.  “We don’t have any kids.  We’re going to use it for our two bulldogs.  They hate to walk.”

Yep.  Her two bulldogs.  Can you believe it?  All I could think was, “I just spent all that time cleaning and sanitizing this beloved stroller so they can sit their bulldogs in it? 

You have to laugh!

I sure hope those dogs know how good they have it!!  Lol!

File Cabinet Make-Over

My husband found these file drawers at a yard sale and immediately saw software storage.  But they wound up in the shed where all good projects go while waiting their turn.

Since we are CLEANING OUT in the largest sense of the word, it was Do Or Die for these little drawers.  Now Or Never.  The Office Or the Donation Bin.  (You get the picture!)

So I wiped them down and started with a coat of Rust-oleum’s Rust Reformer.   As I’ve said before on other projects, it’s a frugal-minded-rusty-junk keeper’s very best buddy.  It has saved countless things that otherwise would have been tossed.

Then I gave the the drawers a coat of black enamel spray paint.  Black was the best choice since I’m not sure exactly how or where they will be used.

They didn’t turn out half bad!  They’re now ready to pick up the slack and make themselves useful.  Lol!

Now an update on the overwhelming project we’ve recently begun: 

Operation Office-To-Bedroom Transformation

Like the name?  I think it needs one since the project is taking on a life of its own.

I suppose we’re making progress.  However, as with any home improvement project, it often gets worse before it gets better.  And one project often spawns another.  Or in our case several.

I’ve reorganized the closets, consolidating, donating, and pitching what I could.  But not coming up with as much space as we needed, I moved on to the shed. 

Although I made lots of space out there, we need to insulate and finish it if it is going to house heat sensitive electronic equipment. 

So I moved to the garage, wondering if I could make enough temporary storage to hold the recently packed boxes till we get the shed done.  (I’m not keen on them hanging out in my living room.)

At that point, my husband decided it might be a good time to relocate our water heater.  He wants to move it from a central hall closet to the newly freed garage space.

You get the picture yet?  I’m not pulling my hair out.  But I’m close.  Fanatical organizer that I am, jugging all of this chaos has me craving large doses of chocolate.  Lol!  

So as much for me as for you who are wondering what is keeping me from blogging, I’m going to try to organize our project list.

1. Insulate and finish the shed.
2. Move shelving into shed to house my husband’s computer collection.
3. Finish cleaning out the garage, office, living room, etc. of things that can be stored out there.
4. Move the water heater to the garage.
5. Create a work area in the garage for my husband to work on electronic projects.
6. Repaint the office.
7. Replace the carpet.
8. Move my oldest son’s things into his new room

That’s not the end of our renovation list.  But that’s enough to list for now!

I’ll try to show you our progress as we go.  It’s just that, up till now, the progress is not real obvious.  In fact, you might wonder what I’ve been up to!

I’m missing hopping around to all your blogs!  Maybe tonight, I’ll get a chance to grab a chocolate bar and visit with you!  But for now, I’m prepping the shed for insulation that I hope to get up tonight and tomorrow.

Enjoy the sunshine!!!!

I Need Your Help

I got this set of book shelves off of Craig’s List for 25$.  But once I got them in the new office area, they really emphasized the dark windowless-ness of the room.

Plus, the only place for them is next to another big book shelf (in a lighter stain) that my father made years ago. That factor also emphasizes their darkness.  So I decided to experiment with one shelf. 

First, I took the whole cardboard piece off the back.  My theory:  Let the wall color show through the shelves and it will look built-in.

I quickly confirmed my hunch that doing so would necessitate my putting some braces in the corners.  Having it rack from side to side isn’t a good thing!  Lol!

And even then, it needed something more to stiffen it up.  So I compromised.  With the help of a (wonderful) visiting girlfriend and her (equally wonderful) daughter, I took the back, cut it at the level of the middle stationary shelf, and only removed the top portion. 

Resecuring (ack!  I sure wish this program would cooperate with my highly appropriate made-up words!  Red underlines are so distracting!)—Anyway, as I was saying.  Resecuring just the bottom portion of the back with extra tack nails seemed to make it plenty rigid.  

So I did the same thing to the other shelf.

The dark shelves don’t look quite as dark, and I think the lighter wall color shows off my husband’s World War planes much better.  What do you think?  Does it look silly to have part of the shelves backed and part not?

Also, every once in a while I’m catching a smoky smell.  The shelves must have been around smokers in their past life.  Any ideas for limiting the smell?  They’re particle board, so I’m guessing the smoke penetrated the particles.  :(  Maybe painting the open backs of the boards to seal them up?

There Are Changes In The Air This Spring

We pulled into the drive of our new house on Wednesday afternoon, May 14, 2003.  It was sobering to think that we would be establishing our new home hundreds of miles away from everyone we knew and loved.  

The sun was warm and the leaves were just starting to unfurl in this part of Indiana.   

My husband and I took a deep breath and sat.  The yard was stark.  Mud puddles lined the drive.  And the house sat quietly empty.  Waiting for us to make it a home. 

Two kids, a dog, a cat, and 26 foot trailer waited to be unloaded.

The moving trucks would arrive tomorrow.  And my husband would start his new job on Monday.  The next four days looked daunting.

Today was all about deciding where we would put everything.

Besides the master bedroom, there were two bedrooms and an office.  In no time at all the boys (barely 4 and 6) decided to share a room.  Being alone in a strange place held no appeal to them.  By evening, they had unrolled their sleeping bags side-by-side.

I was inwardly relieved.  First, because I thought they would sleep better in the same room.  And second, because the other bedroom wasn’t move-in-ready.  This is a picture I took the month before when we first looked at the house.

Purple, green and pink-ish-mauve.  Yikes!  This room needed a paint job at the very least.

Although it was tight, we found a way to squeeze their loft beds into the room they chose that first night.  And that’s where they have been ever since.  Those beds weigh a ton!

Eventually, I painted the “purple room” and set it up as a guest room for family and friends.

When God added a third son to our family in August of 2004, the easiest thing to do was to plunk a crib next to the guest bed. 

And then swap it out for a toddler bed. 

And eventually swap that out for a twin sized bed--which brings us to the present.  It’s my youngest son’s room—unless we have visitors.  Then it becomes the guest bedroom. The dingy mauve carpet still begs to be removed.  

But not for much longer.

Now that the boys are older, we’ve decided to change things up.

Instead of taking a vacation this  year, we are going to give each boy a room of their own—for the first time—complete with a few modest updates. 

We’ll need to use the office as the third bedroom.  Which is much easier SAID than DONE!!!! 

The office, where my husband works on all things electronic, has become a parts warehouse…among other things.  It’s the room I tuck boxes in when I don’t know where else to store them.  And electronic devices that need my husband’s healing touch.  And Christmas presents I want to hide. Shhh!  And, well, everything you can think of. 

It’s scary in there.  

But it all has to go.

The question is-- go where? 

Before we get to the fun part of setting up new bedrooms, we all need to purge.  The space in every closet, nook and cranny will need to be maximized if we’re going to pull this off. 

You all know how much boys (of any age) love to sort and purge, don’t you?  Lol! 

They are all being a real troopers and digging into the process, though.  It’s just so time consuming.   Who wants to come home after a long day of work (or school) and work some more? 

I wish I had a crew from one of the HGTV programs to sweep in and transform our spaces!  Oh how I WISH! 

I’ll keep you posted as we work.  I think it’s going to be a l-o-o-o-n-g process. 

What are you tackling this Spring?

Finally! A Fast Way To Search Multiple Cities/States on Craig’s List!

I search Craig’s List fairly often.  However, it is time consuming when I’m checking multiple cities for something specific.

SearchTempest is a site designed to make make that job a whole lot easier!  And I LOVE it!

It allows you to enter a number of things in the search fields and then search everywhere you want to search—all at once!!!  Even multiple states!  Plus, you can sort the listings however you like. 

As an added feature, it even asks if you would like to include EBay or Amazon listings in your results.

If you are a fan of Craig’s List, check it out!  Search Tempest has already become my “go to” site when I’m looking for a bargain.

And who isn’t?  (Looking for bargains, that is!)