Starting next Monday morning, I’m going to herding a passel of 5-yr-olds through four days of VBS/Music Camp. Yes, it’s entirely possible that this could be disastrous… Bobby laughs manically every time I mention it, which is doing nothing for my self-confidence. I’m looking forward to it though — it’s the first thing I’ve been asked to do for our new-to-us church, and I’m determined to give it a hearty try.
In other news, something’s gnawing on my tomatoes. It’s gotten to the point of me picking them green and letting them ripen on the kitchen window sill. I’ve been advised that I may have a stinkbug problem — can’t say that I’ve ever been told that before. Anybody know how to repel stinkbugs?
Now, about vampires. I’ve belatedly jumped on the vampire train. I wasn’t so much into the Twilight books — Bella’s character just got on my last nerve. But then I greatly enjoyed the movie (developed an adolescent crush on the little pretty boy that plays Edward Cullen), so decided to put “True Blood” at the top of our Netflix queue. It’s fabulous, ya’ll — funny, spooky, gory, and completely addictive. And the writers have nailed the South dead-on… bigotry, religion, drama, social tension, & sex all rolled up into one big fascinating ball. Sue and I have a date to finish Season 1 tonight — we have to close our blinds so our neighbors won’t judge us for watching smut :)
Next paragraph, home improvement. I love a freshly painted room… the more color, the better. From left to right: our master bedroom is smokey slate, hallways are chocolate, kitchen is gourd, dining room is antique blue, and living room is barley. (The blues look very similar here, but the slate is actually a good bit greener than the antique blue).
But then there’s the master bathroom. I hate it. I hate the colors I chose (they’re not pictured… that’s how much I hate them). I hate the painted woodwork (which was white, and then I decided to paint it. Stupid idea.) I hate the curtains I made. Blah. This has never happened to me before. And it would be the room that took the longest to paint, of course. It took a while for me to admit that I chose badly (kept thinking it would grow on me), and when I did, Bobby said “Yeah, I’ve hated it ever since you did it.” Um, ok, super. Thanks for telling me.
It’s directly off the master bedroom, so I feel like I need to blend… keep leaning toward more blue, green, gray-type colors, but it just feels boring to have everything be in that color family. Also been playing with Behr’s ColorSmart tool, where you can choose a color, and Behr gives coordinating suggestions… haven’t found anything that appeals. Dunno. But I’m feeling antsy. Every time I go in there, I hate it a little more. My bathroom is NOT my happy place.
And one last tidbit. Since the Great Robbery of 2009, we decided to have a security system installed. You have the choice of having your system go through a land-line or cell phone, and we chose the land-line*. Bobby and I haven’t had a house phone since the Charlotte days, back in 2006. Feels all retro and old-school and stuff.
*YES, we know that nefarious beings could cut our phone line and have their way with us, but the paranoia has to stop somewhere, and we drew the line there. Please don’t tell me scary stories about rapists and murderers and home invasions, k?
And so to embrace our return to traditional phone service, I bought this baby off Ebay:
Yes, folks, that is a vintage orange rotary phone. I laugh every single time I walk by it… the color, the dial, the shrill ring, the cord that strands you in the doorway with it’s 1.5-ft length… it’s great. Ha.
I found this website w/ some helpful knowledge about stinkbugs. I’m all for eco-friendly methods since you intend to actually digest the food you’re growing. Maybe this can help!
http://www.ehow.com/how_4465118_repel-stink-bugs-off-tomato.html
You might also want to try getting in touch w/ Clemson Univeristy’s Agricultural dept. They have a base of (I’m sure you know) master gardeners who love nothing more than to offer advice & the wisdom of experience. Good luck!
Ok, and one more I found (though the lady posting this is from Canada) :)
http://www.canadiancountrywoman.com/garden/bugrecipes.php
I love the phone! It is too cool!!
I love the colors you chose for your house. I have lots of blue, green, brow and yellow in my home, but I want to repaint. The walls are looking worn, and I have no desire to just replace the colors, at least not exactly.
I feel the need to see pictures of the bathroom because I want to make suggestions (not that you asked). Absent a template, I will automatically recommend a white claw-foot tub, white hex floor tile, vintage sinks, and very very very light blue walls, with white wood trim everywhere – and that doesn’t actually go in every bathroom (despite my nigh religious convictions on the subject).
Speaking of religious – I think helping out with VBS is an AWESOME idea. Five-year-olds will be fabulous because you’ll be completely exhausted. IMO infants are devastating to spend lots of time with for an IF girl because they’re just too precious. Kindergarteners are lovable but they’re not just, you know, cute accessories (who scream all night) – they bounce off the walls and won’t share toys and, you know, have a lot of personality. Anyway, enjoy!
And please share pictures.
You had me laughing with that phone…looks like a perfect emergency phone!
That should be exciting to do the VBS next week, I hope it’s a good experience for you and you don’t lose too much hair! :)
As for the paint, I did our dining room in “Spicy Cayenne Pepper” last year with a “pumpkin butter” ceiling, and the combination is lovely. It’s on the darker side, but it’s warm and comforting…could definitely work for a bathroom too. But fixing a room you’ve already spent so much time and effort on…well, that’s just plain icky! Good luck with it…
For your garden bugs, try mixing a little dish soap with some water and spraying that on your plants. I don’t know about stinkbugs, but other bugs are definitely repelled by that, and it’s a fairly simple/non-toxic solution that will mean you can still eat your veggies.
Stripes. I want stripes in a room. Maybe if you do it in your bathroom I’ll get my fix if you post a pic. All of our walls are boring except for Rachel’s purple room. That’s the downside to the “open floor plan” model. Blah. I do have one deliciously chocolate brown accent wall. It does make me happy.
Sorry ’bout the bugs. I have no advice.
And, I love the phone. For sure.
And, I was the craft lady at our Backyard Bible Club (similar to VBS, but in people’s backyards, duh…). I made it… you can too! :)
I stink at picking paint colors!! For the most part I’m ok with them in the end but they never look the way I think they will.
I love the phone- it reminds me of the one my family had in the kitchen growing up- I’d get twisted in the cord while my mom talked to her friends :)
we usually put 7 Dust on our plants every year, it should take care of whatever is eating yours. you can get it at Home Depot or Lowes. but then again, i don’t eat anything we grow so my garden knowledge is extremely limited!
and im about to start watching Trueblood and im very excited about it! i’ve been reading the books, so i figure i need to dive in to the show as well!
I am almost done with Season 1 as well. I watched the first two episodes WITH MY MOTHER. Oh dear Lord. I wanted to die of embarrassment. But now I want Season 2 to hurry up and be over so I can watch it on DVD!