Saturday-FUNday...in H-Town!

What a FUN day....we headed into town for a couple of errands.  Our favorite optometrist is inside the loop and it's time for a new look - I'm going the Tina Fey route.  Or...Debra Messing in her upcoming show, "Smash."  Darker frames, tortoise shell - a more intelligent look.


Our kale, blueberry and protein shake for breakfast was wearing off; so I googled.  Although we are changing our way of eating, it DOES include a bit of protein.  Burgers - as long as grass fed - are ok.  Yup, I found where in Houston to eat such a burger!

The website will inform you of their location...they're always on the move.  May I say, I thoroughly enjoyed {i.e., devoured!} my burger.  Sans bun + fries.  My piece of grass-fed beef was smothered with bleu cheese, burgundy-infused mushrooms, and "tipsy" onions.  OMgoodness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


On the way to the eye doctor, I chomped gum and chewed on mints to deflect those onions...poor eye docs!  Those close encounters!  Ewwwww.  Any-hoo, had tons of fun picking out my new frames.


Time for a more serious stop.  We went to visit #2 Son.....and felt like tour guides as we helped several couples learn the ropes.  It's rather strange to feel comfortable on Baker Street in Houston.  Our
boy is doing well - God is working within the system.  He's been incarcerated for 9 weeks and is the most stable we've ever seen him.  Since time heals all wounds, I am now ready (i.e., no longer angry) to wrap my arms around him.  In fact, it kills me that we cannot touch.  Talking through the speaker with a thick glass between us is NOT good for mother-love.  Or father-love (especially since My Guy is so tender...).


Speaking of My Guy, he suggested another stop downtown - Phoenicia.  We literally went around the world - it was fascinating to see so many countries represented in food aisles!!!!

An olive oil aisle that went on forever....

Coffees from every corner of the world!

Date Day in H-town is as fun as we make it folks!  Something I want to be intentional about is to step out of my box.  I want to explore - enjoy - and love my days to the fullest.  I'm a lucky gal to have a Guy who wants to hang with me and do the same.  2012 is rockin' thus far!

CPR for The Soul!

I love my "stuff" - it brings me comfort.  
But, this is getting a little nuts...

That would be the make-up drawer of a product junkie!  And, believe it or not, this is the stuff that I {only} use on a daily basis!  I have more, hidden from sight.  


It's hard for me to keep my "toilette" simple.  But, it IS more appealing, the older I get.  Really!  Who do I need to impress?  IF I get to that less is more look, I'll let you know.


All around me, it's always been more is more.  Friends come over and ask:

"Vava, do you have enough black pencils?"

I think I'm ready to simplify - starting with that toilette of mine, getting organized and purging stuff!

AND, this unexpected season is a gift I never saw coming.  The quiet in our home is just what the doctor ordered.  Literally.  I treasure my early mornings: coffee, journal, my daily must-reads, and time with Him.

In the afternoon, two dogs are it, when I walk in from work.  No other demands of me.  (Well, My Guy, yes.  But I get home a few hours before he does.)

One project that will help organize me is on the drawing board.  We are turning our study into a "library."  It is heavy with furniture: BIG desk, and not-so-pretty free standing bookshelves.  We no longer use the space as originally set up.  I'd like to make every room user-friendly.  John, the carpenter, came by last weekend to measure and the big reveal should be mid-February.  By now, you know I MUST have tons of books.  I plan on organizing them and putting all of them in our "new" room.  The thought of a room for reading just about makes my head spin...in a good way!

Part of the reason for writing this year is so our son can read it when he comes home.  He is a fan of mine (blog-wise) and will miss out on Life at Home for many months.  He told My Guy and me: "...be strong, I am going to make it."  Well, if HE is, so am I!  


Another plan of mine is to be intentional in how I spend time.   I don't want to waste it.  I want to read more than watch TV.  I'd like to do more with friends.  

...have friends to our table.  Talk.  Laugh.  Fellowship.  Friends are "the stuff of life" I DON'T want to purge!  They are a blessing.


Vava's List for 2012
1. Take less time to get ready in the mornings = purge products!
2. Purge each room monthly = dispose of stuff!
3. Get strong = exercise!
4. Read!
4. Stay connected to God!
5. Connect with friends!

Connect + Purge + Read = CPR for my soul!

It's All Mine!

Rearranging, fluffing is my hobby.

Took over a corner in our master...

It's quite girly and makes me smile.

VavaVOOM!

Nine days in and it's been a VERY, VERY good year.  Many blogs tout a new year, new you; fresh beginnings, a brand new start.  I am The Poster Child for these cliches!  #2 Son is out of pocket.  Let's be honest - he's incarcerated.  Ok, he's in the slammer.  On November 17, 2011 they took our "baby" away and I was cool with the court's decision.  It had to be.  As the judge stated, "...there is no other option."  So, a good year? Yes!

Let me explain.  Have you ever been worn out and so frail and frazzled that you became another person?  This past fall, I turned into a dull, lifeless, lazy version of myself.  Vava sans the voom.

A book I've posted about, A Perfectly Kept House is the Sign of a Misspent Life is my mantra.  Inside, it's all about the cozy, imperfect interior as far as I'm concerned.  Yet, during the fall 2011, MY innards were unkempt.  I like my innards to be "perfectly kept."

I was furious and fed up with his antics.  He was becoming a danger to himself and others.  He is gone for a bit and now....our home is {once again} our haven.  There is a palpable peace within.  I enter with a smile.  When gone from home, I long to be in it.

My innards are healing and I'm getting my "voom" back.  I think I'll try my hand at blogging again.  I've been fluffing around the home crazily.  Can't help myself there.  In our master, I removed the TV. Rest, relaxation and calm is what we need.  I made a little corner all mine, a girly, "Vava" corner.  It puts a smile on my face.

I am filled with anticipation and HOPE.  Excitement is building - all around me.  At work.  Oh, and literally!  We are building out our study...with tons of shelves.  I need a library more than an office.  What a delicious thought - a room to snuggle into to read.  {sIgH!}

All the while, Jesus Calling has been by my side.  That little book is better than a breakfast of Wheaties!  And better than any book, is Jesus Himself.  He's never left me.  At times, I drifted...but He woos me back.  He's my true "voom."

I hope to be around more and would like to raise a glass to each of you.  Here's to a NEW year - let's all get our voom on!

Stop the Ride!

     Where have I been you might ask?  Or perhaps not.  Probably not....but it's time for my soul to be typed out once again.  Eight (8) hours from now there will be a BIG change in our lives.  How I wish it was a positive, exciting change.  If you knew of it; you might feel sorry for us...but I don't want that.  At all.  Nope.  It's a decision that, in the long run, WILL be positive for #2 Son.  Well, we can hope.

     He will not see it as we do.  He will hate us.  I recall periodic bouts of "hating" my own parents as a youngster.  But mine was because I was grounded.  His hate will be different.  His will be deep, rage-inducing.  Or maybe he'll crack and fold up into a blob of agony. 

     He is going to have to make it through a hellish season....one not many "normals" experience.  To be brutally honest, I pray he survives it. 

     When #2 Son was 3, we would drive into town on Saturday to "play" with my Mom.  I remember telling her, "I think I love him too much."  She wisely said, "No, you love him just enough."  He's been different since early, early on.  Say 2 or 3 years of age.  It's been a constant roller-coaster-life.  For 17 years...

     And, in 7 hours + 55 minutes, the roller coaster may stop for a while. 

    

Learn a Language!

Dr. Gary Chapman, author of The Five Love Languages spoke at our church yesterday on the two essentials for successful relationships. It was really good. 


My sis-in-law went with us and since she's My Guy's sister, knows him well. She's always commented on how busy he is. My Guy cleans more than Mr. Clean! He loves a polished, granite kitchen counter. He loves being on top of the laundry. He mops that kitchen floor like nobody's business.  And I don't.  Those "acts of service" do not make me tick.  What does?  Words of affirmation.  (You can take the quiz right here.)

And that is how I love others - by "wording."  I am an encourager and a cheerleader.  It's the way God made me.  Oh, since God made My Guy too, I see!  He's made uniquely.  So, in order to live together well, it would help to speak the language of our spouse.

Mondays are my day off and I treasure them.  We've been out of town a bit and had company for a bit; so it is time for a bit of peace.  All I want to do today is curl up and read, putz around the house.  It is my day off for goodness sake.  But!  My Guy enters the house around 5 pm and [I've always known] he appreciates dinner on the table and a spiffy home.

I better get going and do something around here - acts of service ya know.  Goodness, I've only got an hour, 15...

What Soothes YOUR Soul?

Sometimes a feeling comes over me that's hard to describe. It's like a punch in the gut but I call it nostalgia.  A memory is sparked and if alone, I might even sigh aloud.  Or I get choked up and all emotional. What spurs me to feel this way??? Sounds often do. A train whistle. I mean really....I stop dead in my tracks and revert to being 12'ish in summertime. That dove's coo as well.

Last night I was sitting on my back patio - tiny little patch of cement - with a tiny little glass of wine. Alone, I was leafing through a shelter magazine, featuring beach houses. Oh, my gosh, they are what summer is or should be! It stems back to my fondest memories of childhood spent at a beach home. Mimi's was grand; but I don't need grand: a tiny little cottage would do.

Check it out:

What a little home for happy-happy-joy-joy days!  Oh, this is lOvE!  There are no plans this summer for a trip to the sea.  I will live vicariously through blogs and more magazines.  Erin of EOS lives close to the sea and her blog set my imagination loose.  (...and forced me to post these pics!).

The sea is it for me; no matter the season.  Yet the older I get, the less I enjoy basking in the sun - give me a fall/wintery day of walking a beach and that's my idea of heaven on earth.

I also found this poster:

Curious if anyone else feels those gut wrenching bits of nostalgia?  I know I should not envy, covet or look to my past.  I don't think that's what I'm doing.

 

The sea cures much and soothes my soul.  I'm just sayin'.