Thursday, May 19, 2011

{A little more about me}

(warning: long blog post ahead)
Well, as you know, I’m new to this blogging thing. One of the main reasons I’ve hesitated about writing a blog for so long is my concern that *gasp* I might not be as titillating and exciting as the person who lives inside my head. What? You don’t have someone living inside your head?
Anywho, as I begin my blogging journey, I plan to write about my favorite things; hence, the name of my blog. Creative, no?
I hope you’ll find my favorite things as interesting as I do. If you don’t, that’s okay. We can agree to disagree and still be friends, right?
So, as the song goes, these are a few of my favorite things:
1.       Family – I love my family! In addition to my nuclear family – me, my husband, and my daughter, I’m the youngest of five children. Three older sisters and an older brother, a wonderful mother, three brothers-in-law, one sister-in-law, five nieces, one great niece, one great nephew and one on the way and an extended family of aunts, uncles and cousins spread all over the states. And that’s just MY side of the family. On my husband’s side, I have a {wonderful} mother-in-law, a brother-in-law, sister-in-law and two nephews and an assortment of other relatives – many of whom I’ve never even met.
If you read my About Me section, you know that I recently moved to Oklahoma from Kentucky, a place where I had called home my whole life. I use the words “recently moved” in the most relative sense. Sometimes it feels like only yesterday that we packed up our belongings and moved “west” about thirteen hours away to our new home in northwest Oklahoma. Other times, it feels like we’ve been here forever.
At times, the transition has been hard. Moving as an adult, settling into a new home, beginning new jobs, making new friends and a new life was and is sometimes stressful for me. I miss my family EVERY day, even if they don’t always know it. Holidays and special occasions are the worst – not being able to be there to celebrate every little thing, even though my husband keeps his promise of making the trek “home” as often as we possibly can.
2.       Decorating –I am a decorating enthusiast, bordering on addict. Notice I did not say “expert”? I’ll be the first to admit, I’m an amateur. But decorating is a passion of mine and I am always decorating and re-decorating every inch of our space. I love decorating shows, decorating blogs, decorating magazines, decorating books, classes on decorating. Well, you get the picture. Did I mention I LOVE DECORATING?
In this blog, I plan to write about my decorating adventures and misadventures (and there are many!), with lots of photos and “how to’s” along the way. Again, I don’t profess to be an expert; just a happy “wanna be” who likes to try new things.
3.       Antiquing Thrifting - I love a bargain and, in my opinion, there is nothing better than discovering a hidden “treasure” among the rubbish. In today’s world, there’s already just too much stuff. So, why not give something old a new life? Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose – that’s my motto! Besides, I like things in my home to be original; not something you can just run out to _________   (pick your favorite big box store – mine is Target! Isn’t Target great? This is NOT a paid advertisement.) and purchase. It’s also the thrill of the hunt when it comes to antiquing thrifting that I love. You never know what you might find from one visit to the next.
Looking through items that have been previously “loved” also evokes so many memories for me. Seeing a cow creamer takes me back to my younger days. Of course, ours didn’t hold any cream. No sir, our cow creamer dispensed good old bacon grease; that liquid gold that enhanced the flavor of many a home-cooked meal. Green beans just don’t taste their best without a smidgen of pork fat. Gotta love the South!

4.       Crafting – Making something out of nothing (see above) can be thrilling! I just never know how things are going to turn out when I start a project. They can be sometimes good/sometimes bad, but the process of making something with your own hands is what I love about crafting. I am a fly-by-the-seat of your pants kind of person when it comes to making things. I’m not good at following a rigid set of directions. I prefer to go with the flow and see how things turn out. Of course, that could be why my projects turn out “sometimes bad”, huh?
I’ll be posting pictures of my creations on this blog; the good, the bad & the ugly! If something turns out great, I’ll include a tutorial, just in case you might want to make it too.

5.       Photography – I love to take pictures! I’m, admittedly, not a good photographer. I long to be able to capture the images that I see in my head. To be able to translate what I see into a finished photograph is my ultimate desire. I’m a work-in-progress when it comes to photography. Nevertheless, I plan on posting lots (I’m talking bunches and bunches, people!) of pictures on this blog. It is my hope that, by doing this, I will become a better photographer. In the meantime, please bear with me as I continue to grow and learn.

6.       Food – I love to try new foods and ingredients! I am also beginning to enjoy cooking more too. My husband and I share a love of eating and cooking {our downfall!} and much of our time is spent watching cooking shows, looking at recipes and planning new meals.
Since food is such a big part of our lives, you will definitely hear more about it in future blog posts. I’ll post new recipes as we try them out and talk about new and exciting places to eat.
7.       Travel – another love! Unfortunately, time and budget constraints sometimes get in the way of new adventures. Hopefully, in the not-so-distant future, I’ll be able to travel and explore new places and cultures more. In the meantime, I can still travel close to home. You’d be surprised what you can discover within three to fours hours drive from your home, particularly if you’re new to an area like I am! As I come across interesting things and people, I’ll let you know and post pictures too!

8.       Animals – Our animals are our family too! We have an undisclosed number (lets just say SEVERAL) of four-legged (and one three-legged) friends that live in our home. We (me, my husband and daughter) love both dogs and cats and can’t resist an animal in need.  My husband and I could be considered what you’d call “suckers” when it comes to helping out needy, sick or homeless animals.
Since our furry friends are family too (what an alliteration!), I won’t be able to resist talking about, bragging about and posting pictures of them, as any proud momma would do.
Well, there you have it…. a few of my favorite things. Not a definitive list by any means, but now you know a little more about who I am and what this blog is about.
I hope I’ve kept your interest and I invite you back for next time.
Until we meet again….
TTFN my new friends,
Susan

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