Hello....??? Anyone Still There.....????

I have been away SO LONG!!!  I don't think I've missed THIS much time EVER since starting my blog....!  It's truly been 2 complete MONTHS since my last post....!!! :-O
Did everyone give up on me....???  I hope not, I AM still here, I've just been spending ALOT of time on the new forum, and my life has taken a crazy turn, so there is just not enough time in the day to do everything that I really want to do!  I'm SO sorry!! :-( 
*Sigh!* If only I had that stop-watch from the Twilight Zone!!  Remember?.... he could click it on, and time just STOPPED until he clicked it off again, and he was the only one who knew it and could move around while time had stopped!  I've always remembered and loved that episode, because I would LOVE to have a stop-watch like that!! :-D
If only.....

Well, since I don't, I need to just commit to posting regularly if I want to really have a blog -- there's just no excuse for letting weeks go by without posting!

The main reason, though, is the new forum.  It's coming along really well (as those who joined know! ;-D), and I feel very responsible for it, like it's my baby, kind-of!  I feel like I need to be there to respond to people and make sure things are working right, and to post fun ideas or projects, etc.  We have quite a few members, but most of them DO NOT post....it's kind-of sad!  It would be so fun if we could make more friends to chat with here and there, or have others come up with fun ideas, etc.  WHAT keeps people from posting and joining in, I wonder??  I mean, is Facebook really that much more fun to be on everyday???  I'm sure for some people it is, but for everyone...?  It can't be!!
Well, we'll see.....maybe it will grow bit by bit! :-)

SO....I am VERY sorry to have been neglecting my blog, and all my special readers who I appreciate so much!  I love my blog, and it's important to me to make it a bigger part of my life!!  I PROMISE to do better!!!! :-D

In all this time, we have gone through Fall and right next to Thanksgiving -- WOW!!  Where does the time go????

For those who are NOT on the forum, I will show you what I've been working on.... :-D :-D :-D

MY FAVORITE CABINET!!!!
Remember how I posted about this so long ago....??  Well, I finally got it started!!! :-D (with Brian's help, of course!)
He helped me shape and cut the sides.....

Then we had to glue wood pieces together to make the shelves the right size.  We used a NEW TOOL for that, a Biscuit Cutter (fun, fun, fun!! :-D).....

That last picture is all three shelves glued and clamped (with waxed paper over/under the glued joints in case any glue leaked out).

Then I added the shelf supports to the sides.....

Then I painted the inside shelves.....

That's the color I picked for the inside, and to layer with the dark blue that I'm going to paint the outside of the cabinet.  These still have to be sanded and stained, so they will look old and worn!  And I added a closeup of the chipped edge of one shelf -- I purposely saved that side to be in front so it will add to the "oldness" of it, naturally!! :-D  Well, that's what I HOPE it will do! LOL

So that's as far as I've gotten on it!  Today, Brian cut the supports for the back of the shelves and he cut the back pieces to the right height.  I'm using the rough-cut 1x6 fencing boards that Lowe's sells for CHEAP (!!) -- they will be perfect for this, and look just right! :-D

We are going to try to get the sides, shelves, and back boards put together tomorrow -- I have quite a bit of sanding to do first, so I hope we CAN do that!  Even with that done, we'll still have to make a door (with the Biscuit Cutter again - yay!!), and nail the front pieces on (EASY!), and then paint and distress the whole thing (HARD and scary...!).  I am NOT good at that whole process, I fret and stumble through it every time!! :-(   And HOW, HOW did they get that "water-damaged" look on the door.....can someone explain that to me???  *Sigh!*  I know I'm not going to be able to create the antique-ish look that I want with mine, so that's why I'm not looking forward to TRYING to....!!

I've also been feeding a new obsession I have -- spray painting anything to make it look like stoneware or redware!!!!!  It's addictively FUN! :-D  And you wouldn't believe the super-cheap bottles I can find at the thrift store!  Just LOOK at the fun stuff I found over the past several weeks......

As I was telling the ladies on the forum, I got ALL of these items for LESS THAN $15!!!!  I think it turned out to be $13-something! (from a combined 3 trips)
And see those hideous canisters with the hearts in the last picture....??  Just wait until you see how I turn them into stoneware-loveliness!!! :-D 
I also love the little ink bottles - what GREAT shapes! - and the big drawer chest!  That cost $3.50!!  I cannot resist little drawers of any kind! LOL

That's kind of where I'm at with projects.  Of course, there are about 100 floating around in my head too! Haha!!  *Sigh!*  I told you, I need that stop-watch! :-D

The rest of the time, I've been doing ALOT to help my late friend Cheryl's children.  Her son has been here every day, and her daughter has been needing my help with some things too.  They are YOUNG -- Cheryl had them when she was 39 and 41, so they are still teenagers.  Her daughter is only 16.  They are living with her oldest son and his wife, but I am the one they call when they really need something.  I spent the day before last with her daughter at the doctor's office checking on some abnormal symptoms she was having that were making her nervous (it turned out to be nothing).  I couldn't be sure if her brother's wife COULDN'T take her, or she just wanted ME to be the one with her, but I am grateful and so willing to do anything I can for either of them!  But it does take up alot of time running around for FIVE teenagers (mine, included)!!!  Some days (like Wednesday) are just completely taken up, and I can't get anything done around the house like I planned! :-)
But think of the impact I am making on two young people who will take with them the memory of what I am doing for them, and my truly willing, caring attitude -- for the rest of their lives they will have my example and my care for them in their hearts and minds!  Not to mention what my own children are learning about how we treat others who need us!  I am influencing how they will all be as adults, and maybe MY example will be what causes them to help someone else in the future who needs THEM!  Imagine that! -- My small, easy sacrifice might have a far-reaching positive effect on people I will never know!!!  And of course, even without that, I feel so HONORED that these two young people trust ME when they need something or want something, or when they can't count on anyone else to care about what's going on with them....I just cannot refuse. :-)

So that's what has been going on around here!  I have been cooking some yummy things too, but I'll save that for a later post!!  I PROMISE to post again with my cabinet progress!  And I promise to get better at posting in general -- hey, Christmas is right around the corner, and I have some fun ideas of things to make, so I don't want to miss that!! :-D  Maybe I should have one day a week be a "tutorial" post....?  Or every-other week....??  Hmmm.....something to think about....!! :-D

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!! ^-^