Today was my first 'real' day of Christmas Shutdown. For the other 98% of John Deere, Christmas Shutdown began last Friday. I was, er, lucky enough to be one of the few that had to work the Monday after Christmas. After a very early start, which included going to work in my pajamas, I was home by 2:00. I finished taking down my Christmas tree and a few other decorations, had a few visitors stop by to see my home and not more than ten minutes after they left, I did something stupid. I went shopping. The day after Christmas. I don't even shop Black Friday! After getting my oil changed, Target and Hobby Lobby were the only two stores I could stand going to before it started raining and I decided that Starbucks was in fact just what I needed.
At Hobby Lobby, they had these cute wooden/cardboard letters on sale. I picked up a couple and then went to the paint section. After picking out three colors of paint that match my bedroom, I wandered the store and ended up in the yarn aisle. Boom. Light bulb. I had seen yarn wrapped things on Pinterest, so I figured I'd give it a whirl. I bought some "practice yarn" and ended up going back to Hobby Lobby today to get more.
The finished project! I'm pretty excited about it, especially where I'm going to put it..stay tuned!
Another great idea I had this morning was to make a "Thankful Jar." Just before reading The Vintage Pearl's blog about "a blessings jar", I thought it would be neat to have a clear jar full of colorful paper - with an idea, a word (or words), Bible verses, quotes, notes, something I did that day, something/someone I'm thankful for, etc. I'm planning to start this on New Year's Day, but I don't know if I can wait...
I have officially been a homeowner for ten days. This past weekend, I had my first breakdown, reality check, whatever you want to call it, as a homeowner. As I've previously mentioned, I'm horrible at making decisions. I change my mind a thousand and one times. Today I found out that my student loan payments are almost equal to my house payments. OUCH. That means they're higher than I was told. Surprise, surprise. While I figured I'd be paying $350/month just in loans, let's just add on another $100. Why the hell not, right? It's not like I don't have anything else to pay for. Yes, I've had some help from my parents, family and friends with housewarming gifts, groceries, etc., I'm not the spoiled little brat some people think I am.
Don't get me wrong. I LOVE my home. I LOVE my neighbors.. well, most of them. ;) But a tiny little part of me wishes that I would have thought this through a little more. Saved a little more money, maybe. Made different "big" purchases. I also need to realize that I'm not going to get everything I want. My basement won't be finished until at least next winter, if not later. My dining room table is a card table and chairs that my aunt and uncle had in their first home, 20-some years ago. Because you know what? Life goes on.
Here's a sneak-peek of my home...
I used my camera's 'panoramic' setting to get the kitchen/dining room/living room all in one shot. My kitchen looks a little funny, the garbage lid is open, I have too many pairs of shoes in the entryway, my counters are a disaster and my TV looks tiny but you get the idea. ;)
My computer is taking forever to upload photos so this is all you get for now. Hopefully this will motivate me to write some more this week...and of course add some more pictures! I will say, though, I have been on the computer significantly less than I thought I would be. I'm busy cleaning and picking up or finding a home for something packed away in my spare room. Who would have thought. :)
Happy Monday. Have a great week!
