Recovering....

Hey ya'll, hope you are enjoying what's left of this fabulous fall!  It has been a nice, enjoyable, relaxing one for me.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the prayers and well wishes on my surgeries.  Finally getting back to normal... kinda.  Still having to slow down and sit down every once in awhile.  My body is constantly reminding me that it's not that young anymore, hehe!  But God has blessed me with a wonderful family that took amazing care of me and never complained... well to my face anyway.  ;) 

With this forced relaxation time, I have been catching up on my pile of the past 2 year's worth of magazines, coming back to blogland, and watching a little HGTV... sure miss the good ol' shows but I do enjoy the Property Brothers Drew and Jonathan.

Attended an estate sale down the road from me that I never even realized was there but I found it in the last hour.  So all of this was originally $40 but with the last hour discount, I only had to pay $5... vintage linens, old books.  The dictionary is old, yellowed and falling apart but will be perfect for the many book page ideas I have been seeing on Pinterest.  I also picked up an old Bible that is ripped and falling apart.  There are more pages here than I can craft in my lifetime so if anyone is interested in some pages to craft with, shoot me an email and I'll gladly share with you!  berryhomespunprimitives (at) gmail (dot) com.  

I'm not supposed to be sharing this on social media because of the ISIS threats that are targeting military and their families... darn it, why does the world have to be so cruel?  But I just can't help it.  I know my God is our protector and He has already won all victories for us!  We attended my son's basic training graduation during fall break and it was wonderful to watch the ceremonies, seeing the soldiers march through clouds of green, blue, and yellow smoke as they sang their cadences, and just spending time with our son since he's been gone for the past 10 weeks.  Here is his graduation picture.  Love this kid, so proud of him... 

Happy Veteran's Day and THANK YOU to all who sacrifice their lives to keep ours safe!

Dining Room Shelf

I was able to get a small project done this year.  I forgot to take a before picture (and I just LOVE looking at other's before and afters).  But here's an in-the-process photo.  I bought this nice sturdy wooden shelf at a garage sale for $3.  Robbie is always my helper, no matter what I'm doing he finds me and asks to help.  I let him put the first black coat on since it's going to be painted over a couple more times.

A close up of the red undercoat followed by another coat of black on top..

I finished it off with black Bri-wax and loaded it up with a few prims.  It's a nice addition to my dining room, especially with all the natural wood...

Best of all, I love how it only cost me $3, a little paint, and an afternoon of fun with my little guy.  Oh, and look at the tiny butter mold I found, barely 1 1/4"... I was SO excited!  It's the little round wood piece on the lower shelf, it has an acorn design... adorable!

Thank you friends, for your prayers and sweet words of encouragement on my last post.  I'm grateful that I can come here to express my feelings and be showered with love when I need it the most.  I've been staying busy since Ryan left.  We're cleaning out bedrooms, getting ready for a garage sale next month... lots of kids clothes and toys to pass on.

Thanks for stopping by, wishing you a grand week~

My year...

I've been a little occupied this year friends, and quite honestly I'm having a hard time.  This kid here..

went and did this in February...

and this in May...

So here I sit a crying mess because Tuesday morning I send Ryan off to Ft. Jackson for boot camp.  Then he will have training to be a chaplain's assistant in the National Guard.  He is my oldest and the first to leave home.  I've been on an emotional roller coaster this year... so proud of him, yet so selfish and want to keep him safe at home.  What keeps me going though is to see his excitement when he talks about it.  This kid is ready to do something with his life and this momma is having a rough time with it.  His influential years at home have come to an end and from here on out I have to trust God that He will watch over Ryan and keep him safe.  I've heard moms talk about this time in their lives; but I never thought I would feel this heartache with there being 2 other kids still at home.  So if you would, Ryan and I would appreciate your prayers.  Thank you my friends!

It probably doesn't help my emotional level that I found out 2 weeks ago that I have an enlarged uterus with fibroids.  I am scheduled for a hysteroscopy on Aug 22, followed by a robotic partial hysterectomy on Sept 5.  Doctor reassured me that it's not cancerous and nothing to worry about.  Enough about me...

Not much going on around the homestead to blog about because I have been wrapped up in my family and our last few months with Ryan, but I have spent some time outside.  I went a little petunia crazy this year... well I should say Amariah did.  We have pots of red and pots of striped red & white in the backyard by the pool.  She picked these beauties out, love the color combination she chose...

The Twilight Viola was really pretty this year.  It looks like pastel pansy.

Something new I tried this year is Lantana.  Oh my I love these pretty flowers and beautiful leaves!  They look so good in the old whiskey barrels.  Wish they were perennial.

The pink double knock out roses bloomed out beautifully as always, along with the single knock out yellow roses (oops... should have deadheaded and cleaned up around the mulch before the pic, hehe).

I transplanted the hosta to the back yard and must say she is loving her new home... look at the lushness of those leaves!

I just realized all of my flower shots are close and don't show the overall picture.  But here is one little vignette that will greet you on the front porch.  I love how the red of the double begonias complements the red and white enamel pot that it's sitting in. The cute fence piece was a Christmas present from my sweet mother-in-law.

I think it's bedtime friends.  My little mind is an emotional wreck but coming here and putting my thoughts and feelings in writing is good therapy for sure.  I have not actually talked to anyone about my feelings so this has been good for me.  Thank you for being the best blog friends ever.  I appreciate you and your prayers!

I'm grateful for the time that I've had with my son and very thankful that God chose me to raise him!  Sure, I can look back at all the if's and where I went wrong but I choose to live in today and try my best from here on out.

Thanks for stopping by friends, miss you TONS!  Have a delightful week ahead~

Valentine Tree

Well friends... I sure wasn't planning on being gone for months and oh how I have MISSED YOU ALL!!  I won't go into details but we had some issues with my youngest son, Robbie, and his elementary school back in August; only 9 days into the new school year.  With Rich beside me, I went to battle for my child.  In the end, we pulled Robbie from public school (the same school that my oldest two attended) and I am now a homeschool 2nd grade teacher mom.  Yikes!  So needless to say, it has been quite the transition for all of us.  My oldest two, a freshman and senior, are still in public school.  I took my complaints and evidence to the Administration.  I was told that I was in the right as they profusely apologized and was assured that it would be dealt with.  We've been around this small town for many years and I know whom to trust... I trust that it was most definitely dealt with.  For those that have been following me for a few years know that I've had to battle the school in the past (on too many numerous occasions!).  We HAVE to stand up for our children, we are their ONLY advocate!!

Along with this mess, we are in full swing of basketball season... of which I am the booster club president for 7th-12th grade boys and girls.  We have around 100 players so there are lots of parents to deal with.  But we've been fortunate so far to have no complaining, only volunteering.  Thank you Lord!  =]

As we are starting our 4th month of online homeschool, I feel that we are finally in a groove.  I took down the Christmas decorations today and not one to leave my year round tree bare... I went ahead and added some primitive metal heart ornaments and vintage Valentine cards to it.  I don't know about your area, but these cards are pretty cheap around here.  These were 50 cents to $1.00.

These two are really sweet.  They are dated 1929.  It looks like they are To Odelia, with one being from Catherine and one from Oneita.  I like that I'm able to display them like they are communicating with each other.

This is the oldest card I have, dated 1926.  It actually opens up but there is a piece missing.  I still love it though.

These are dated 1929 and 1930.  Most of these are also To Odelia.  I bought them at the same antique mall but at different times... funny that I was able to buy her Valentines.

Isn't homemade the best?  Cute little homemade card dated 1927 to Odelia From Kathern.

To start the year fresh, I emptied my blog reader, Feedly, of the 1000+ unread blog posts that I'm behind on.  I was so totally overwhelmed that I didn't know what else to do.  Now I will be able to catch up with you as you have a new blog post.  I've missed you terribly!

I'm grateful not so much for this actual blog, but for the wonderful sister friends that God has touched and blessed my life with!  Thanks for staying with me.  I'll be visiting you all between lessons and basketball games.

Have a delightful week~