Thrifty Thursday

There has been a lot of chatter on the blogs I read about some fun finds at the Dollar Tree. I went in to pick up a few pieces to make this hurricane vase. You just have to glue one of the glass candlesticks and the vase together with glass glue and you have a great new addition to your fall decor. I found the colorful filler at Craft Warehouse and the candle was on sale at Pier 1 ... a wonderful spicy aroma!
The other item that has popped up quite often is the ceramic pumpkin ... yep, $1 and it matches the color scheme of our home so well.
I love a bargain and it's fun to see a touch of fall here ... there ... everywhere in our home! Even though it is in the 80's this week in NW Oregon, it's fun to put out our fall decor. I hope you have added a few great finds for fall in your home.

Subway Art

In my RSS feed I have about 65 blogs I subscribed to dealing with the home. I have found some fabulous ideas and I love how this generation loves to repurpose things and live frugally.
One thing that stood out to me was their creations of Subway art. I thought it would be fun to put a smaller one together with the names of all the cities we visited during our trip to Italy.
I have a wall in the family room designated for photos/art from our favorite vacation spots. We love watercolors and ink drawings. Those and Christmas ornaments are the souvenirs we usually carry home in our suitcases. Anyway, this is the new featured art on that wall. I love looking at it and being reminded of all the wonderful memories from our trip.
I purchased a 12x18 frame from Michaels and, of course, it was on sale @ 50% off. I created a new file in PSE to fit the frame and left a white margin with the inside filled with black. I downloaded Waukegan LDO font and placed the names ... adjusting as necessary. I specifically picked this size because Costco prints it in an hour for $2.99.
I have seen other bloggers create their family rules in this art form. Many have purchased canvases and painted the words on. My version was a bit quicker to complete : ) I wonder what it would be like to print out a Wordle Word Cloud and have it framed? Holiday words? The possibilities are endless.
I would love to hear your ideas ...

Lab Decor

My new employment location is in the testing lab. For students, coming to this room is about as exciting as going to the dentist for a root canal.
I have been busy doing software updates, installing the new browser, auditing computers and sanitizing keyboards and mice ... getting everything in order.
One thing left up to me is the room decor. I thought it would be great to put up some inspirational 18 x 24" posters and got to work creating them in Photoshop Elements. The room now has something of interest and looks a little more warm and inviting. I still have three more to create plus a welcome banner.
I am thankful that Loretta gave me a folder of jpg stock photos a few years ago and it was the basis for finding quotes to match. I also found a great site if you need photos for a project: www.freedigitalphotos.net
This kind of got me in the mood to start scrapbooking again. BUT first ... our iMac needs more memory ... a project Walt and I need to work on together -- hopefully soon!

Back to Blogging

Another reason I have not been blogging ...
At the end of August, without much hope of being hired by a school, I created a new blog with a different focus. I was going to focus on some of the things that worked for me when I was a stay-at-home-mom and where I was going in this new season of life ... "forced retirement." I had a theme for each day, recipes to share, craft projects -- digital scrapbooking, furniture before and afters, etc. I worked for days on getting it all set up ... and life changed within days of launching it.
So, I have been in a tug-of-war ... go back to the old blog or go ahead and kick off the new one? But for right now I just don't feel like I have the time and energy to do what I had created it for. Maybe at the beginning of the new year ... always a good time to commit to something new.
Keep watching ...

Hhhhmmm ... Where Have I Been??????

I have one steadfast rule when it comes to blogging ... posting about my job is off limits ... so I've been off the radar for a while.
As many of you know, the Media Assts. were RIF'd again in the district where I was employed and it did not look like they had an action plan to save our positions. So, for the first time in 40 years, I made a claim with unemployment over the summer. I wish that I could tell you that I enjoyed those weeks of filing claims, updating my resume, visits to the WorkSource office, taking tests, filling out applications and going for interviews ... but, sadly I did not adapt well. I never have been fond of roller coasters and this summer felt like the twists-and-turns, the upside-down-thrill-to-the-bone ride of my life.
Just when I had given up hope ... the Tuesday after Labor Day weekend I had an interview for a part-time position at a middle school and started work the following Monday. Even though I am in a different building and surrounded by students taller than myself : ) ... it is good to be back "home." I have worked in schools for over 20 years now and I just couldn't imagine employment in any other field.
I am so thankful for the opportunity to work another year ... and even with a part-time position ... to retain my rating/wage/insurance and PERS. Thank you to all who have been praying for me ... it's nice to get off the roller coaster for now!
Enough said : )