Waiting for My Muse

Sometimes I feel inspired.  Sometimes I don't ~ so I wait, and

wait and wait for the inspiration to come.   It will happen.

 I just have to be patient.

Is your muse sometimes elusive too?

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Therapy Dog or Angel?

source

I posted this story of Nala, the therapy dog on my Facebook page this

weekend.  Y'all know how much I love dogs, especially my Bentley.

I believe that dogs are the best friends.  They give us such joy, comfort

and companionship.  

Their love is all encompassing.  Nala's love is.  She goes to work at a

nursing home every day with her master ~ her daddy ~ and while he is

busy doing his own work, she has created her own job.

Nala visits the patients and gives them love and compassion.

Enjoy the video.  No more words are necessary.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Feeling Thankful for You

Starting a blog is one of the best things I have ever done.

I have met so many wonderful, talented, funny, creative,

and loving people.

 Any time I have encountered a problem that seemed too big to

handle, you were there to encourage me.

Blogging has opened me up to a whole new group of friends.

Friends like you who have become a very important part of

my daily life.

I have tried to explain the concept of a blog to my Aunt.  In simplistic

terms a blog is like an online magazine yet it is so much more.

It's not just about decorating or sharing recipes.  

And it's not just an online journal because there is the interaction 

of thought.

We open our homes and our lives to one another.  

We are friends.  For that I am so thankful.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley 

Facing My Fears

I am quite brave when it comes to doing things that make others

afraid.  I have always been able to stand up in front of a room

full of people and give a speech or whatever without any fear.

I am not afraid of spiders.

I have driven a car in many foreign countries on both the

right and left side of the road without fear.

Once when I was charged by two big Rottweilers who 

escaped from a fenced yard I stood my ground and called 

to them saying "hi puppies" with a lilt in my voice and in

such a loving way that they stopped dead in their tracks.

They looked at each other and then at me as if they were

thinking "do we know this person"?  Then they came

over and sniffed me.  I wasn't afraid.

However ....

When the skies darken and I can hear a rumbling in the distance, 

I start to get nervous.  A thunderstorm is on it's way and I get

scared.  The first flash of lightning makes me panic.  

Years ago my nickname was Flash.  I was given that name

by co-workers after my townhouse was hit by lightning and

burned to the ground.  It wasn't my first experience with the

force of nature because two years before the fire, the house I

was living in at the time was struck by lightning while I was home.

The point of this is not about the past, but how the past has

effected my present.  When the rumbling starts and I can see

the flashes of light I panic.  I feel like my heart is going to

jump out of my chest.

Living in South Texas makes this difficult because the storms are

nearly daily in the spring.  There is just no escaping them.  Big bolts of

lightning and deafening crashes of thunder fill the hours in the middle of

the night and early evening.  Sometimes in the morning just before

sunrise too.  

It's hard not to see the lightning.  There are many, many

windows in this house.  Most of them are the Southern

Colonial style floor to nearly ceiling ones.  The windows

in the family room are 17 feet across.  On a storm free

day they are wonderful, but when the lightning is flashing

away, there is no way not to notice the light show.

So when the storms begin, I head for the dressing room and into the master bath

because it is the only room in the house without windows.  Day or night I close the

bathroom door behind me and wait until the rumbling seems to be over.  The 

other night I was in there for two full hours.  

It's silly and I hate myself for being such a pansy!

I could have been in bed under the covers, but instead I barricaded

myself in the bath.  Silly and childish thats what I am.

So I decided that I am going to face my fear.

I read up on thunderstorms.  I learned that I am pretty safe inside.

Yes, the house could be struck by lightning.  I already knew that

because it has happened to me twice, yet the chance of me being

struck by lightning while inside is pretty slim.  

I learned that I can wear my iPod and listen to music to distract me

from the booming thunder.  It's okay to do that as long as I am inside

the house.  Just don't connect an iPod to your ear when outside during 

a storm.  Keep the doors and windows closed and don't stand in 

front of the window.  I can just find ways to occupy myself and

start desensitizing my fears by facing them.

Last night we had a big storm right after dinner.  The lightning strikes

were very close and the thunder was really loud.  David and Bentley

sat with me.  I said the Lord's Prayer to myself.  I survived.  

I think I can do this.  I really do.  And I will need to be brave

because we have thunderstorms in the forecast through this

coming weekend.  Wish me luck.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

A Sunday Brainstorm

Ya'll have seen the bookcase in my studio.  Well, today I had a brainstorm.

It seems like my miniature dollhouse construction date has been put off

indefinitely, so this idea suddenly came to mind ….

Let's turn one of the bookshelves into temporary digs for the dollhouse

furniture.  So I cleared off the shelf and started to move in the

sitting area and kitchen.

I'm loving it!   

What do you think?  

I do like the hutch against the pink and white striped paper.

The island has some room to spread out.

The vintage stove seems content here.

The sink is looking a little lonely in this spot.  I think I will make a skirt for it

and maybe add a shelf or a plate rack up above.

The more I think about it, the more I have come to the conclusion that

the former idea of Texas Rosebud Cottage is turning into

Texas Rosebud Townhouse.

I could easily clear off another shelf and add a bedroom and bath :-)

The little gray cells are working overtime now!

Metamorphosis Monday

Tweak It Tuesday

Inspire Me

I just made David a pimento cheese sandwich to eat while he watches

the Masters Golf Tournament.  We are very traditional around here.

Whoops ~ a little piece of cheese just fell onto the kitchen floor.

Guess who cleaned it up for me?

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley