Wicker baskets also make a nice decoration on top of your kitchen cabinets if they don’t go all the way up to the ceiling. They are great for putting kids toys away on shelves in their room. I’ve used small ones to put out wrapped candy on the coffee table and different sized ones for fabric flowers on the dining room table.

Large baskets make nice looking trash cans or laundry hampers. Large oval ones can be used as pet beds or even a temporary bed for an infant (of course you have to put some kind of pillow or padding inside first).

Wicker baskets are very versatile. What uses have you come up with for them?

The tower turns on and the fan runs like a champ but nothing loads. The USB ports and other plugs in the back don’t work at all and anything plugged into them don’t work.. like the monitor and keyboard.

A new heatsink will cost only about $20 but it’s just a matter of being able to spare that $20 right now. I’m also spending my time looking at netbook reviews, laptops on different websites or even a whole new desktop.

I’m just thankful, right now, that Andi had this spare laptop. It’s been a real lifesaver.

I can walk fine. I am allowed to pick up heavy things. The doctor told me, when he released me after the surgery and rehab, not to lift 90 lbs until I’m able to lift 50 lbs. In other words work my way up to heavier and heavier things.

Men!! Can’t live with them.. can’t shoot them!

Drew took down the range hood and gave it the same brushed chrome look too. The walls had an apple wallpaper border along the backsplash and we took that down. It was very easy to do with a spray bottle filled with hot water and a scraper. Over the sink had apples painted across the wooden strip that joins the cabinets on either side. They are now gone too thanks to primer and paint.

I have to admit that I didn’t get to help out with the painting much. I mostly kept the baby occupied while Andi did most of the work. I did help with the trim while the baby was napping though.

The house looks almost 100% better now even though there are still more rooms that need repainting.

I mostly get searches for recipes, tips for making your own Febreze, baking soda, crochet, hair color and stuff like that. It’s all stuff I’ve posted about on this blog. I probably have posted tips on packing a suitcase, although I can’t find that post at the moment.

I think I’ll go and check out my stats some more and see what else I can find.

He’s not walking yet but he stands by himself and has taken a step or two. I’m not looking forward to him walking.. well I am but I’m not. He’s also a climber and is constantly climbing on the couch. Andi says he’s going to give her a heart attack because he’s such a daredevil already.

He used to, as of just a few days ago, take 2 naps a day. The past few days he’s only taken 1 nap a day. That is making for such a long day chasing Benton and trying to keep him out of trouble. As Andi says… It’s a good thing he’s cute! lol

The reason I haven’t found a job yet is that the job market for my type of work is not very good. There aren’t a lot of jobs out there for general office workers and secretaries. I was working at a temp job in 2008 and was laid off at the end of the season. The company decided, because of the economy, not to bring in temp workers in 2009. Because I was a temp worker I didn’t pay in enough to unemployment that the unemployment I did get only lasted a couple months. I have been without any income, except for a little here and there since April of 2009.

I haven’t given up. I’m still looking. I send out resumes and have even tried to make my resume better but either I don’t hear anything or I go to an interview and don’t get the job.

I’m thinking of painting the room a nice, calming color. Right now it’s my escape.. well it will be more of an escape once I get a TV for in there and get it painted and get new linens and comforter. It’s a plain, dirty white rectangle right now.

My sister-in-law moved into a 1 bedroom condo and we are paying rent and also trying to fix the place up so she can sell it later on. The house needs lots of paint and care to get it ready for sale. There is a fireplace in the basement that is white painted brick. It would be nice to be able to get rid of the brick and replace that with one of the nice Amish fireplaces that I’ve seen. There is one that even has a entertainment center type surround for it.

This house is electric and having a fireplace in the winter helps to keep the heating bills down. It doesn’t have central air either, just window units. We only put the air on in the rooms we are in. At night we turn off the downstairs units and turn on the bedroom units.

Her parents are my oldest son and his wife who live in Texas. Sophia is their 2nd child. They have a 3 year old son named Trey.

Since I live in New Jersey and am unemployed I don’t know when I’ll get to meet Sophia. We can’t afford to travel right now. We just don’t have the money for that. I’ll just have to be content to watch her grow up in pictures for now.