On the eve of Decoration Day, aka Memorial Day, I sit here thinking of all the men and women who have given their lives serving this country. It humbles me and makes me grateful for being able to serve my country honorably and not during war time.
It also makes me appreciate what I have and who I am because of my time in the US Army. I enlisted when I was 17 years old and left home before my 18th birthday. I grew up, reinforced respect for authority and added to my pride and appreciation for the freedoms we receive being US citizens.
I looked so young in my military picture. Hard to believe that photo was taken 33 years ago. I remember it like it was yesterday.
I was honored to get to spend several hours with The Saluting Marine, Tim Chambers on Friday when he attended an event at a local motorcycle apparel shop that I organized. There wasn't a huge turnout due to the time of day, and that was ok because we got to know each other and talk. I have called him my friend for a while, but now I consider him closer than a friend. What an amazing heart he has for our military personnel.
This reflection also makes me think of all the people in my life that I admire and respect. Those who were there for me when no one else wanted to be. Those who have stood by me through thick and thin, good and bad, ups and downs.
I get kind of mushy this time of year because I am so proud of the lessons I have learned and what I have been able to accomplish because of those lessons. I believe that every able bodied person should be required to serve their country for at least 2 years right out of high school. I feel like this country would be so much different if that was required. I know that my belief is not a popular one, but think of all the respect our young people would have and the discipline demonstrated.
Tomorrow we will have a cookout at our house with some family and friends. We are hoping Tim and his group of people will be able to make it. If not, that's ok. He's invited Shawn and I to come to CA to visit and stay with him. Bonds have been made.
My nephew was sworn in and joined the US Army on Thursday. We are not sure when he will have to leave for basic training. I am so proud of him and the decisions he has made for his future. I will miss him terribly. He comes over often to check on me and to spend the day with me. I know I'm not supposed to have favorites but Nick always has been and always will be my favorite nephew. We just have a bond and connection I don't share with the rest of them.
Thank you to all of my fellow veterans, active duty personnel and especially those who paid the ultimate price serving this country. I am proud to be a member of this club. HooRah.
I've been away for a while. Been very busy and no time to post.
Last week we finally got the remodel money in our account. We called a couple companies to get estimates on flooring. Empire Today came out first. We really liked the carpet from them, but the hardwood flooring was wayyyy to much money. We nixed the hardwood and went with carpet. Since we haved 3 floors, we chose to only do two floors for now, so we had someplace to put the stuff from the rooms we needed to clear out. The company is known for next day install, so we had less than one day to empty out several rooms. We got it all done and decided to purge when we unpacked.
The flooring guys came on Friday morning and installed all the carpet in what seemed like no time at all. They only sent two guys but they worked well together and they worked hard. We are so pleased with the look of the floors and now I'm not satisfied with the floor that has the old carpet still.
Oh, on Monday our foyer got ceramic tile installed. Boy it looks amazing. Kind of tan but ties in with the grey/blue carpet we chose for the house.
We got the outside of the house painted along with the front door.
We picked out the deck doors and need to make sure the measurements are correct before we order them. It will take 5 weeks for the livingroom slider to come in because it has to be specially make due to the size of it.
Then on Tuesday, the guy who is doing the deck came over to give us his estimate and help design the deck. We are doubling the size and doing a bump out for the grill to fit in. I also want some built in seating. We are going to purchase all of the supplies and provide most of the labor so it won't cost us very much to get the entire deck done. I am so happy that this is all in the works.
We also picked out the new stove and dishwasher. They will take about 3-4 weeks to come in.
The rest of the upgrades and repairs will be done gradually. The major things are either done, or in the works and it's a little overwhelming right now. The poor dogs and cat don't know what to think of all of the changes. Zura was shaking the other day watching us pack up the living and dining rooms. She just didn't understand. I think she's calmed down now.
I haven't been getting much tatting done, or any other craft for that matter. I've been unpacking all of my supplies. Since we rearranged the furniture in the house, I don't have the little corners to stash my stuff any more. I'm making it work tho. It's nice to purge stuff we have had for years and don't need.
So not much else is happening right now.
I am happy to announce that Shawn's new Sidewinder Shuttle has been unveiled.
I have listed it for sale in my Etsy store - www.Etsy.com/shop/nagstudio
I already have 6 orders. WOW. That's cool. But Shawn will be very busy in the next few days making shuttles. I'm so proud of him. He is such a wonderful artist and designer.
I will be able to get my bobbin shuttle design completed in the next few weeks. I'm really excited about that. Shawn and I are really having a great time designing shuttles.
Off to get some tatting done.
Well, it's been a fun week. First, Shawn and I had some real quality time together while he was sick. He went back to work on Friday. He's still not 100%, but much better. We went to the bank and settled on our home improvement loan. We've been doing some research to see who will be doing the work in the house. I'm going to be getting bids and quotes this week for the doors and floors.
So on Saturday, our motorcycle organization had our annual fund raiser. We teamed up with two other chapters and went to West Virginia to a quaint little restaurant. It was a great time until we hit a little rain on the way back home. It was a wonderful time. I planned on stopping by the Sheep and Wool Festival at the fairgrounds. I was still on the bike and more rain was expected so I just went home.
Today I got to go. I met up with one of the ladies I usually tat with. I had a great time. I got a few little things and I splurged on one really cool item. I got a pair of glass knitting needles. Yes I did say glass. They are so beautiful. I chose a pair of cobalt blue size 7 circular needles that are 29 inches. The needle parts are longer than usual so they feel really great in my hands.
I picked up some size 17 crochet hooks. I am hoping to connect with the company who makes them to get a supply for our tatting shuttles. I have spent as much as $2.79 each for hooks. If I have to charge $4.00 extra for a shuttle with a hook, my customers won't be happy.
So speaking of shuttles, I sent out Shawn's latest design for testing. I will get the results back this week so hopefully he will be able to take orders this weekend.
I have 19 tatting shuttles on the table right now that are in the final stage of production. I've been told that I don't have enough product in my Etsy store. I guess I'll have to get working.
It's time to get back to tatting the Renulek Spring doily. I'm on round 6.
