by Robin on July 30, 2010
“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
~Maria Robinson
*****
It’s almost August! I know for most of you the carefree days of summer stretch on until after Labor Day, but around here the poor kids start school in a matter of a couple of weeks!
This got me thinking … have I done everything I wanted to do this summer? Have I had all the fun I planned on having?
Inevitably the over thinker in me followed a rabbit trail…what about the year as a whole? How am I doing with my goals for 2010? What have I learned this year? What am I still hoping to do?
Do you know that there are only 155 days left in 2010? Which means we’ve already lived 210 of the 365 days allotted… this year is on the down-hill race to the end.
The older I get the more determined I am to live my life with intention but also with direction. Here’s what I mean…if I intend to go to Florida but head out of Georgia going North, I’m not going to get to my intended destination. (Andy Stanley has a great book that explains this beautifully: The Principle of the Path ) I can’t tell you how many goals I’ve intended to accomplish but ended up failing for lack of direction. For lack of being on the right path. (Most recently, I intended to fit into my clothes but baked my way straight through 2009. No matter how good my intentions were, with my 3 times a week baking, I was not going to stay the same size, I was going in the wrong direction!)
With my intention in mind, I find it necessary to check my path. Am I going the right direction this year, doing the next right thing to get to where I want to go? I’ve talked lots about my focus-word for the year...friendship.
But what I haven’t mentioned is that last January 1st I did a little time-travel.
I wrote a letter (in my journal) to myself of things I’d like to say on January 1, 2011.
I wanted to put to paper specific things, attitudes and goals I’d like to tackle in 2010. And in my letter, I wanted to thank God in advance for helping me accomplish my projects and surrender my crummy attitudes…as He sees fit of course.
So yesterday I looked back at that letter to see how I was doing.
I’m not going into detail but God has helped me with so many things already….although, I’ve room for improvement. This is where that breath-of-fresh-air quote comes in…
“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
I’m starting today to make certain, with God’s help, that the ending of 2010 will be a good one…
Anything that you wanted to do, quit or experience in 2010 that you’ve put on the back-burner? If it’s still important to you…it’s not too late.
xo
~Have a weekend full of intention and purpose my friends~
by Robin on July 28, 2010
The 2 weeks of working 12-16 hour days has caught up with me. I’m nearly catatonic this week while trying to finish up our DIY project.
Soooo…
I thought I’d update you on my “JunkFood-fast”!
I posted about my issues with all things baked and sugary HERE. My plan was to come off of junk-food sugary treats for a month and then eat them just once a week. My goal was to fit back into my clothes and to get out of the habit of eating ice cream cones for lunch!
I’m into week seven. I’m only eating a small amount of sweets once a week these days and here’s what’s changed…
*My clothes fit! It took 5 weeks before I could tell a difference but finally, they all fit!
*I’m not craving sweets like I was…this is nothing short of Divine Intervention. Can I get an AMEN!
*Somehow, I’m able to eat less of everything! I wasn’t really trying for this, it just happened. I seem to be more satisfied. Again… miracle I tell ya.
*****
These things have saved me…
At some point during the late morning I want to chew something sweet…frozen grapes have been meeting that need. Believe me, no one is more shocked and aghast about this than me! Grapes are after all a fruit and I’m not dipping them in milk chocolate! But the texture and the just-sweet-enough taste is perfect.
Five or six nights a week, The Husband makes us smoothies. Holy canolli the man can make a smoothie! The consistency is like a milkshake…Here’s his recipe for the 2 of us…~6-8 strawberries cut.
~2 bananas cut
~1 1/2 cups Dannon Lite & Fit Strawberry Yogurt
~3/4 cup skim milk
~ice…about 16 ounces. He’s wouldn’t commit to an amount here. He says use: just enough to get your consistency right. (Add some and then check consistency and add more if it’s not milkshake like!)
Blend away and enjoy!
This is our dinner so if you’ll be eating this for dessert you may want to use half…
*****
I don’t think I’ve ever gone this long without baking. I’m not pouring over my cookbooks either and I won’t let myself watch the cooking channel!
I’m not going to say I’ll be doing this forever but it’s really freed-up bunches of time that I’m using for our DIY project. When I do get back to baking, it will be MUCH less frequent and I’ll do lots of low calorie-healthy baking and save the high calorie-high fat scrumptious-ness for special occasions!
Because…I feel much ever so much better now that I can zip my pants!
xoxo
Ps…I have also cut out bread 6 days a week during this time. I still eat whole wheat wraps but no bread. Thanks to my daughter and SIL’s trainer Seku, for all this advice! For me, it worked!
So I’m wondering…what’s the one thing you eat lots of that would be near-impossible to give up?
by Robin on July 25, 2010
Hope all of you had a scrumptious weekend…mine was lovely AND productive!
The wall, trim, wainscoting, doors and cabinets are all painted and gorgeous! The refinished floors look great and somehow The Husband and I got all the furniture back into place without scratching them! I’m hoping to show you DIY Project before and afters really soon. (Check HERE for past posts)
Only a few fun projects are left to be done…curtains, hanging pictures and a couple more furniture painting projects!
****
I did one of those fun projects on Saturday afternoon…
A Lamp Re-Do!
I bought this lamp at T J Max, it was on sale from $39.00 to $15.00! Obviously the color was too dark for my new color palette but I love the shape…
First, I spray-painted it this yummy soft green…
But the lamp-shade wasn’t right for the flava-flave in my house and when I tried to cover it with a different fabric, it was just too dark. I’m determined to get more light in the den!
So I bought a super cheap white lamp shade from The Pottery and covered it with a creamy fabric.
But first…
I covered another lamp shade a few weeks ago and took some shots for a tutorial. The burlap cover for this lamp was easier to see …
Here’s how…
This part is a bit tricky, it would be a good idea to make a pattern before cutting your fabric. I didn’t do this because I live on the edge 
I rolled the lamp around the fabric and penciled an inch on either side of the edge of the lamp shade to make my cutting line.
This shade had a trim around the edges which I took off before gluing on my burlap…
Then I glued on the burlap with a glue gun (high heat). First the seam down the back. Then turn the edges to the inside of the shade and glue…
Then I glued the trim back on top of the burlap. And now’s the time to hot glue matching ribbon or seam binding to the inside edges…
Now, back to the cream lamp shade…
When it was covered it was a bit boring, so I made a burlap ruffle!
I cut 2″ strips…
Sew down the middle of each strip with large stitches…
Carefully pull thread to gather and make a happy little ruffle!
Use a glue gun to adhere the ruffle around the edges…
This is a really easy re-do find a bargain lamp and have some fun!
So to recap…I went from this lamp which was cute enough…
To this lamp which goes with the new look I’m going for…
Oh and one more thing…today, July 26th, would have been my mom’s 70th birthday. She left this world almost 5 years ago and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss her profoundly. Mom is the reason that I have a passion for living my legacy with intention. If you are blessed enough to still have your mom walking around this planet, maybe give her a call. I sure wish I could do something as simple as picking up the phone and calling my mom.
~Happy Birthday Mom~
I’ll be linking to Metamorphosis Monday and Get Your Craft On!
by Robin on July 23, 2010
Happy Birthday to me!
I wish I could send every one of you a little box of cupcakes today so we could celebrate. Truth be told I’m not so much celebrating my birthday as I am that the bulk of my painting job is OVAH!!!
*****
I’m working on a couple of lampshades along with a few pieces of furniture waiting in line for a brightening, but today in honor of my forty-nine years on the planet, I’m taking off and playing!
The Husband is refinishing the second half of the downstairs floors this weekend, so the house is still in utter disarray. But the walls, trim, cabinets and paneling are painted! Woot!
Have I mentioned how over-the-moon I am about Behr Paint and Primer? Yes, I know I have. But let me say one more time…
I COULD NOT have done this project without that miracle paint!
We’ve spent under $250.00 on Behr Ultra Paint and Primer (We have some left to start the upstairs. Shhhh, don’t mention this to The Husband yet.)
What on earth could make such GINORMOUS changes for under $250.00?
One of the biggest changes is the fireplace…
It’s creamy~dreamy…
I also love the once dark, kinda dreary stair rail, now it’s clean and happy…
I’m tickled with the progress!
Hoping to show you finished pictures really soon…but first, the rest of the floors have to be done!
*****
In case you were wondering what I’ll be doing today…
~Have a happy weekend my friends~
xo
