Settee project

This wonderful sturdy settee was my husband's before we got married. The fabric on it has been bugging me for 3 years and I finally got around to recovering it.

Usually this would have been a quick and easy job but the screws that hold the cushion on have odd square inserts and it took me about an hour to find a drill bit that would fit and remove them. It was only 4 screws but what a job! (Obviously this is an old piece of furniture as I haven't seen screw heads like that in forever!) Anyway...I finally got it taken apart only to find two layers of fabric were on it and about a million lots of staples.

Yuck!!!

I found a fabulous fabric that coordinates well with our comfy chocolate brown leather couch and yellow/cream wing chairs. 

Now look how beautiful the settee looks! Yay! 

Glad to have this project D-O-N-E!

"Drab to Fab"

We've been looking for quite some time now for a small piece of furniture that will fit under the overhang of our kitchen countertop. You know the place where most people would put a few barstools for extra seating? Well, in our kitchen the brilliant insane designer decided that area would be right in the walkway through the kitchen to the garage and sunroom so barstools are out of the question. That area is already way too cramped with it being the main thoroughfare through the kitchen. So...that brings me back to the piece of furniture we wanted. The counter overhang is only about 13 inches deep so trying to find a cabinet or bookshelf that narrow is kinda tricky.

I found some great pieces at local stores that were about 15 inches deep but obviously they wouldn't work. Then, I found the perfectly sized piece at another local place. It was really perfect and made with reclaimed wood, which made it even more perfect. Then...I looked at the price tag...$449.00! Are you kidding me???

So, the search continued... 

We stopped in a new place that claimed to sell overstock and damaged items from major retailers. They had mostly clothes and small appliances and boxed items and only a couple of pieces of furniture in there But our perfect piece was right against the wall. Jackpot!

Here it is in our driveway after we brought it home. It is a cheap piece with imitation "inlay-look" that apparently was a Costco reject. It had some damage (chips, cracks, gouges...nothing we couldn't live with though) And those horrid knobs! Those were the first thing to go.

Very 1970's style...

First I sanded the entire piece with an electric sander, then cleaned it with TSP (trisodium phosphate). Next, my kind husband painted it with his handy paint sprayer because he didn't want me to mess it up wanted to help me. Here he is in action:

After the paint dried, I hand sanded the corners and edges to give it a distressed look. Then the pretty new knobs went on. I am really happy with the way it turned out. I'll post a photo of it in its new home under the counter once we get it inside and put all our cookbooks in it.

Here it is in our kitchen in its new home. 

with cookbooks and storage

Someday we will get organized...

I ran across some really good information today about organizing. I know...I'm definitely not an organizer - I'm a magnificent stacker- but never an organizer. Anyone who knows me, knows my bad habit of getting really excited about a project or idea and only doing it halfway, or for just a short time. ADD as an adult I guess... Anyway, here is a cool link:

Clothes Purging: How to

I went into my closet to pick out my clothes to wear today and got rid of 7 shirts immediately. Into the donate bag they went. I know it's only 7 shirts, but they're 7 of the ones I swore 2 years ago I would wear again. Oh well.

The laundry monster is constantly rearing its ugly head at our house. Sometimes I swear there must be 10 people living in the house with me (or else the neighbors dropped off their dirty laundry at our house). Where does it all come from? You'd think each of us wore 3 outfits daily! Here is something that I already do that is really helpful. I've never claimed to be good at laundry, in fact, I'm really horrible at it, but I was pleasantly surprised to see an organizer suggest the same tip that I've been doing for years.

The Laundry System

I'm headed out to the washer and dryer right now...in a minute...I promise.

Easy as Pie (or energy bars)

I have been reading lots of recipes for healthy cooking and stumbled upon one for homemade energy bars (like Clif bars). Who would have thought I could make them so easily and inexpensively compared to store bought? I bought raw cashews, almonds, medjool dates, shredded coconut and dried cranberries.



Ingredients:

2 Cups Moist Medjool Dates, pitted and chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped  (optional)

2 Cups Raw Cashew Nuts

½ Cup Raw Almond (without skin)

¾ Cup Cocoa Powder

A Pinch Of Sea Salt

½ Cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

2 Tbsp Vanilla Extract

2 to 3 Tbsp Cold Water

Method

I don't have a food processor, but if you do, this would be even easier using one. Using a blender, I chopped the nuts and added the cocoa powder and sea salt. Then, I chopped the dates very well by hand (make sure your knife is extra sharp because this is sticky!) Combine chopped dates with nut mixture in a large bowl. Then add the shredded coconut and the vanilla extract. I believe the best cooking tools are my hands so I got in there and squished it together until it was mixed well. Add drops of water if needed to get the right consistency. Scrape the dough mixture into a 8 x 10 pan lined with aluminum foil, Press evenly with a rubber spatula (or your palm!).



Chill for about an hour. Lift out of pan by the foil and turn over onto a cutting board. Cut into squares and enjoy the homemade goodness! Mmmmmm! Wrap pieces in wax paper to keep them from sticking together. Store in refrigerator.






Pretty cool, huh?




I also made a green smoothie for breakfast this morning - recipe courtesy of my friend at thepracticalhousewife.com.
Basic Green Smoothie


Here is a very basic smoothie recipe - use what you have on hand and more importantly, what you like!

1 cup of water, juice or milk

2 cups of fruit

2 cups of greens

splash of aloe vera juice (optional)

splash of flax oil (optional)


Today, I used fresh pineapple.



Fresh spinach




Throw in the blender and give it a whirl!




I put mine in a cocktail glass to jazz it up. Cheers! (PS- It made enough for 2 smoothies so I have some already for tomorrow morning.)

Listening to God

Many people have asked how Spencer and I met so here is our story:

In July 2008, I was preparing to move back to Charleston from Greenville, SC. I was a member of Match.com so I changed my location from Greenville to Charleston. Spencer hadn't been on Match.com in a while but decided to check it out about this same time. There wasn't much there that interested him, but he did find my profile and joined Match just so he could email me. He sent me a few sweet emails, but I didn't want to get involved with anyone since I was in the middle of moving, so I turned him down gently. Six months passed and we both forgot about each other. 

But, God did not!

On Christmas Eve 2008, I was working late at MUSC and was led to attend St. Andrew's Church service since my regular church service had been earlier in the day. I had no idea that Spencer was a member of St. Andrew's. The following Sunday, (December 28th), I returned to St. Andrews and because Spencer was running late for church, he had to find a seat different from his usual spot and ended up sitting right next to my family and me. However neither of us knew it at the time! As good Anglicans do, we simply exchanged the peace during the service and then went our separate ways. God must have been thinking, "Good Grief, don't they get it!" But He continued to work behind the scenes to bring us together.

On December 30th, 2008 Spencer decided to rejoin another dating site, eHarmony. Just a few days later, on January 3, 2009, I decided to check out eHarmony and filled out the extra long personality profile questionnaire. (For those of you unfamiliar with this process, at Match.com you can browse other people's profiles at will, but at eHarmony, you cannot see anyone unless you are first "matched" according to their 29 dimensions of compatibility.) Within 24 hours of filling out my profile, we were matched! I wasn't a paying member yet, so I only knew that I was matched with a 46 year old man named Anon and his photo was hidden (until the fees were paid). So, I had no idea that this was Spencer... But, Spencer could see my name and photo and knew I was the same girl from 6 months earlier. Figuring there couldn't be that many girls named Teal in Charleston, Spencer decided to look me up on Facebook and sent me a message expressing excitement that we'd been matched by eHarmony. Not knowing "Anon" (Anonymous) was really Spencer, I had no idea why he was writing me.

The funniest part was the Anon thing. When Spencer first signed up for eHarmony, he was being extra cautious and listed his name as Anon. Once you create a profile with them, you can't alter your name (why would you need to if you used your real name?) Ha! Of course I was extra cautious and read something into all this. At first I thought I'd been matched with some middle eastern guy and really questioned their matching criteria since I was pretty limited in who I was looking for. 

Basically what happened was I went online and filled out the 29 category questionnaire (VERY detailed if you haven't done it) but I didn't pay for the service yet. So, within 24 hours they matched me up with Anon, 46 year old male. I couldn't see his photo or complete profile since I hadn't paid yet so when Spencer emailed me on Facebook (trying to find me another way) that he was thrilled that eHarmony matched us up, I thought he was nuts! 

So, of course I had to sign up (ie-PAY) in order to see who this Anon person was and clear this up. Being kind of cynical, I didn't just sign up for 1 month...I mean, what if this wasn't the one? I paid for a whole year (stupid move). Anyway, when the photos popped up, I could see Spencer and realized it WAS him and of course the same guy from Match.com. I was kind of aggravated at the whole thing. Why was he trying to hide his identity? He was really persistent, but in a sweet way, because he truly felt I was the one for him (based on my profile). He was charming and kind. He quoted poetry and such in his emails to me and it was just "too much". I was overwhelmed and that's part of the reason I didn't connect with him on Match.com. His photo made him look older than he was (guys don't know anything about picking photos for these things) and in spite of him saying he enjoyed dancing and all the things I also enjoyed, I wasn't convinced he was telling the truth.

I was still a little reluctant to begin dating someone new, and especially someone who felt the need to hide his identity.  So, we emailed back and forth for 3 weeks before finally meeting on January 24th, 2009, just two days after my 42nd birthday. When Spencer showed up with a birthday present for me (a bottle of pinot noir and the book, The Shack), I was quite impressed and you could certainly say that "He had me at hello." Our first date was at The Boathouse restaurant on Breach Inlet Restaurant and included good food and good wine, followed by dancing (the Carolina Shag) which are three things we both enjoy very much and continue to be hallmarks of our relationship.

As we grew to know each other more, we couldn't believe how much we had in common and how God continues to work in our lives in small ways. There are more stories that could be told which illuminate such things, but it is enough to say that there is no doubt that we believe that this is a match made in heaven.

December 29-31, 2009, Spencer planned a surprise trip to Savannah, GA to get away after Christmas. On that Tuesday, Spencer took me on a romantic walk on the Savannah riverfront and proposed with a beautiful three-diamond antique-style ring. The center stone is from Rosemary's (Spencer's mom) engagement ring. What a special gift! Rosemary passed away about 10 days after we met so unfortunately I never got to meet Spencer's mom. After the engagement that evening Spencer had reservations for us to have a romantic candlelit dinner at Elizabeth's on 37th Restaurant.

I am so glad God pushed us so firmly because that is the only way we would ever have met since we are both so hard-headed! It's hard to listen to God sometimes when we have our own agendas, but if we hadn't, we would have missed out on this wonderful relationship and marriage. We are so good for each other. Where I fail, he excels...where he falters, I shine. We are truly blessed!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving each year makes me even more nostalgic for family memories and tradition than usual. I almost always start my reminiscing with memories of the whole family together at Nanny and Granddaddy's old farmhouse out in the country. It is cold weather in my memory although living in the South it is very possible that it could have been upwards of 75 degrees on Thanksgiving Day (like it is this year!). Anyway, back to the farmhouse... I remember going there every year with my parents and sister and seeing all my mom's side of the family there. Unfortunately, my Dad's parents passed away the summer I was eight years old so most of my holidays were spent with my Mom's family from then on. My aunts and uncle would always love to see us as my sister and I were the only children for a long time. My mom's siblings didn't get married and have children until much later and it was great fun getting all the attention! We would have a huge meal that Nanny cooked all by herself to include at least a 20 pound turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, rice and giblet gravy, biscuits, all sorts of relishes and pickles, pickled peaches (story on that in a bit), celery sticks (to dip into individual crystal salt cellars at each place setting), two kinds of cranberry sauce (with and without berries since Grandaddy liked the one with berries) and so much more I can't remember right now. It was a huge feast and no one left the table unsatisfied. The pickled peaches were a mystery to me. They came in a jar but were always served by my grandmother in a beautiful round crystal pedestal dish with a wide gold band around the rim. I never once tried a pickled peach as a child. It became a joke to see if I would eat one each year but I  held my ground. I guess since it wasn't a staple nutritional food, my mother never invoked the "one bite rule". Thank goodness!

Nanny would always have several choices of cakes, pies and cookies for dessert. The routine would go like this: Nanny would name off everything she had for dessert choices and Grandaddy would say "I'll take some!" Even though he did the same thing every year, we always laughed.

Before dinner, my sister and I would run around the farm playing hide and seek and other games. We loved crawling around underneath the giant magnolia tree in the front yard, wandering under the grapevines and digging in the sand driveway for "doodlebugs". We would find the small circular holes and take a small stick to swirl around in the doodlebug holes (seen below) and call out to the doodlebug to come out. "Doodlebug, doodlebug...come get bread and butter..." My mom and aunts taught us that chant. As you can see by the scale using the pen, the holes were small and on the farm, there were hundreds of them. I don't know what we actually did with the bugs once they crawled out of the holes but we surely had fun aggravating them to come out! Silly, but a vivid memory.

After dinner, the adults would all go out to the front porch where it was cool as night fell. As a child, that was the last place my sister and I wanted to be so we would resume playing inside the house going in closets and dresser drawers fascinated by all the old things from my mom's and aunts' childhood we could find. Old photos, dolls, toys were so much fun to see. My uncle's childhood bedroom was downstairs and the windows looked out onto the front porch so when we were in there we could hear the adults talking. His room was dark and had over sized mahogany furniture in it, including a giant wardrobe that was kind of scary to two little girls. We would only go in that room to hear if the adults were about finished talking and we might be heading back into town for home. Sometimes we would bring our pajamas and we would take turns bathing in the old white claw foot tub. That was a treat!

Before heading out the door I would always ask Nanny for biscuits to take home with me. I wanted one in my hand (to eat now!) and four in a brown paper bag to eat with my family for breakfast the next morning.

Remembering things like this makes me hope that I am helping to build wonderful memories for my boys that someday they will pass along to their children. Maybe the years have brought changes, but the family bond should stay just as strong as it ever has been.

Times they are a changin'

Pharmacy has always been to me a wonderful profession. Years ago the Pharmacist dispensed odd concoctions under a shroud of secrecy to patient patients. These days patients are rarely patient. We live in a world that expects everything fast and cheap and unfortunately the pharmacy profession has bought into this mentality and has followed suit. No longer is a pharmacy used to purchase wonderful healing medications guided by the knowledge and friendliness of the local Pharmacist. Today, most people expect to rush through a drive thru window and get what they need and expect it to be cheap. The Pharmacist is expected to work longer hours and with less technician support than ever before in spite of increasing consumer demand for quick service. When is it going to be enough? What will it take for the Pharmacy professionals to stand up and get society's attention and realize that faster isn't always better? (After all, fast food might taste good, but it certainly isn't good for you!) Respect for the Pharmacist has declined over the years and severely so just since I graduated in 1989. The Pharmacist is a public servant, true...but with the onslaught of bigger and better, faster and cheaper, the respect for the knowledge and caring nature of the Pharmacist has dwindled. Chain stores offer a 15 minute guarantee for prescriptions. This isn't a pizza you're ordering people...it's for your health! The Pharmacist needs to review your profile, scan for drug-drug interactions, make sure the dosing is appropriate and many other things (including sorting out your insurance) before we just "hand it to you". This is sad. I genuinely love what I do but the rush, rush of retail simply wore me out over a 15 year period of time. I wish patients had a better understanding of what goes on behind the counter. We are people too and we really do want what is best for you.

The last two years, I have been working in the hospital environment and it is a challenge but I love it! Pharmacists are much more respected in the hospital and people actually care what we have to say. Pharmacists make recommendations all the time about patient therapy and dosage adjustments and our knowledge is utilized so much more. In addition, I am essentially going back to school. I borrowed a colleague's 4-inch thick Therapeutics book and dove straight in! It frightens me sometimes to realize just how much of my education I haven't used over the years and if you don't use it, you lose it! It feels good to use my brain more these days. I had sort of fallen into a rut over the years simply counseling patients. Believe me, I enjoy speaking to patients very much, but the clinical knowledge and wording of things definitely goes by the wayside during patient counseling. I am eager to learn (and remember) new things these days. but, a part of me will always be unsure of myself. I need to work on my self-confidence. I believe that I may know the answers, but am afraid to speak up for fear of being wrong. This will get better with time. Until then...off to read about Hypovolemia and Septic Shock. Funny, I don't remember the type being so tiny when I was reading this book at age 21...