Spicin' up the Bedroom

Ever since we had our bedroom furniture delivered, I've been debating what to do with the huge empty space above the bed. In our previous house we hung a caricature of Nick and I drawn in 2005 at a music festival. Unfortunately it looks too small in such a wide open space; so we've moved it to a different wall of the room.

I spy a sleepy puppy

I did a lot of research for different things we could use to decorate the room and the space above the bed....I kept returning to something I found on Amazon; a wall decal. Whimsical and unique.

Surprisingly, it only took about 30 minutes to apply. It's guaranteed to last. It is removable, but not re-usable. Totally happy with my purchase :-)

Giving Mosaics a Try

I've had this craft idea in my head that I've wanted to try for over a month, and finally was able to make it to the craft store to pick up my supplies. Over the past 2 weeks I've taken some spare time here and there to complete it.

It's not an original idea. I've seen similar decorations in the stores and figured I'd try and recreate it myself. By George, I think I've done it!

Start to finish:

After adhesive and tile applied

Grouted, sanded and polished

This was just a trial run. Since they came out half decent, I think i'll give my other ideas a try: coasters, trivets, and stepping stones.

One Step at a Time

Our three day MLK holiday weekend was spent rekindling relationships with family.

We took a trip to Montrose, PA and spent the night at my dad's. We were greeted with open arms, great food, and good laughs. Thanks dad and Carrie for a great weekend!

Baby sister Ella

While "up north," a visit was also made to my Gram. I've written about her in a previous blog. Gram is doing much better since October. She currently resides in a nursing home for rehabilitation (the same one she worked at for approx 25 years). She has expressive aphasia, but with time and patience, you are able to figure out what she is talking about. She recognizes everyone, and her facial expressions let you know she understands what you are saying. Keep up the good work Gram! I'm so proud of you!

It's frustrating to see what happens when life throws you a huge, unexpected set back. All we can do is take one step at a time, and we will end up where we are meant to be.

Let's Have a Party!

On January 5th, I signed up to become an independent consultant for Scentsy, wick-less candles.

I was introduced to Scentsy by a friend at work about 2 years ago. I wasn't able to make it to her house party, but had the opportunity to order through the catalog before her party had closed. What a great decision! I had only ordered one warmer and a few scents to get started.

Boleyn Full Sized Warmer

Once i received my warmer, I screwed in the bulb, added a few cubes of the scent "Flirtacious," and turned it on. With in minutes the sweet aroma of green apple, grapefruit and white amber flooded the room. I loved it! I thought to myself, "if only I could buy one for every room."

...Fast forward to December 2010.
After Nick and I moved into our new home, I immediately found a home for the one and only warmer I had so far. The scent of "Cranberry Mango" now lingers in the foyer. I knew I would want more warmers for other rooms, but how to make it cost efficient?....HOST A PARTY!

I contacted a local Scentsy consultant and planned a party. The turn out was amazing! Not only did friends and family get to be introduced to a great, safe way to "scentsify" a room, but as a host, you earn great rewards for hosting a party....some free products, and discounts on others! I have now added 3 more warmers to the house and about 10 more scents to choose from.

Bandana Full Sized Warmer

Milano Full Sized Warmer

Tiki Full Sized Warmer

So after this whole long story...what is my point?

I'm asking you to take a gander at my website: http://mshinman.scentsy.us

You can order directly from my website, or sign up to host a party. Scentsy ships to anywhere in the contiguous US....even Guam <wink>.
If you host a party in January, you get DOUBLE the half-priced rewards!
There is always free shipping on orders over $150 (with the exception of Guam).

Becoming Opposite Schedules

January begins a new shift for Nick at work. On Monday he started evening shift....11 hours. He works 12:30pm-11:30pm. So he's still lying in bed when it's time for me to hit the road in the morning. I come home to an empty house, and go to bed before he gets home. I never notice when he actually crawls into bed because i'm a deep sleeper.

Nick will continue this shift for the next month, until he is then switched to the shift he was originally hired for: 10pm-9am. At least from here on out, he has Fridays off, making a good 3 day weekend to catch up from what we experienced over the week.

New Years Resolutions....

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2011. It's going to be hard getting used to writing ..."11" at work.

So...it's about four minutes until the ball drops, and Nick, Nina, and I are sitting in our living room discussing the year 2010.
Nick: "2010 was a really weird year for me..."
Me: "why?"
Nick: "Well, i did get married."

Five minutes later...

Nina: "My New Year's resolution is to be more positive."
Me: "I really want to work on paying off the bills."
Nick: "Making babies."

Whoa! Wait just one minute. Ha Ha. Did my husband just say that?....Again? I know his paternal instincts are starting to kick in, but that almost threw me off the couch. :-)

For those who may be wondering, "when do they plan to have kids?..."
I am still on the "five year plan;" however, there has been discussion about possibly one to two years from now. We'll just go with that for now.