7 Quick Takes

1- Have you ever noticed how customer service in so many places is not what is used to be? For example,  I had the opportunity to go out to lunch with girlfriends yesterday at a great little downtown Salem restaurant, Amadeus, that had only been opened for week. The food was good, the ambiance lovely, the conversation and fellowship, as always, stimulating and filled with much laughter. The servers were dressed appropriately and were very friendly, however, I do have one gripe, our server called the group of us "you guys" at least four times during our meal. The biggest issue with this is that there were NO GUYS present at our table. Now, she did call us "ladies" a couple of times,  but being referred to as "you guys" drives me crazy, especially when all the people in the group are WOMEN! I guess one can expect that in a fast food place or even a mini-mart (no offense to anyone who works in one of these establishments and has good manners), but when I am paying $19.00 for a sandwich and iced tea, I would expect my server to be properly educated in how to speak with customers. Please, if you work with people (which is most of us), remember your manners and don't call groups of people "you guys" unless, of course, it happens to be just that, a group of "guys"! Thank you.

2- Mary and I went to a class that my mom was teaching at Whitlock's Tuesday evening. It was "sew much fun" as we used my serger to make some aprons. The reason for really going is because I've been doing a lot of sewing but neglecting my serger as it hasn't been threaded properly. Well, Tuesday  changed all that as my mom, Jeanette Pitalo- who we call the premiere sewing/quilting teacher/guru in Salem and probably the mid-Willamette valley- not only threaded my machine, but we recorded it on my iPad. Now if we forget how to do it, we can watch the video. The other awesome part of going to. Class was being with both my mom and Mary! Mary and I ended up spending the next day sewing some projects together which made it even better. Be sure to do stuff with your kids from the time they're little, and when they become young adults, they may still want to hang with you.

Mom and Mary with "Sergey" our serger!

3- I've been trying to slowly get some projects done around the house this spring to spruce up the place. My latest was the front porch. I took an old vanity that we had in our garage and put it in front of one of the windows as a plant/water fountain stand. I had also picked up an old CD rack on freecycle that I painted and am using as a plant stand. I've got o e teacup with sedum on it, and I hope to find enough to have one on each shelf. My next goals are: painting the porch floor, repainting the chairs, and putting up some lattice on one side to keep the dog from climbing into our chives planter box.

Front porch gettin' prettier!

4- We've gone through quite a bit over the last year or so with Brian's insurance issues. We just found out that his one insurance runs out May 31 while the other has actually started. With all of this, we talked and he's decided to make appointments for a bunch of stuff before the end of the month. The best couple of things about this is that 1- After years of his needing hearing aids (due to work-related stuff and not old age), he'll be getting some! I don't think he realizes how much he's been missing, and these should help a lot. The #2 thing is that he asked Cari to go with him to help pick out his new glasses. I am looking forward to seeing what our very chic daughter helps her dad get. I'll have to post some photos of my handsome hubby with his new look!

Not quite the look I am expecting!

5- My family and friends think I've gone a little crazy, pallet crazy, that is. The thing is, they're right. I've been seeing so many great projects on Pinterest and different websites made with pallets, so I've started collecting them. My boss just got something delivered at the salle yesterday on a 6" pallet. I felt like I had won the jackpot when he and David loaded it in the back of the suburban! I've got a few ideas, so you'll have to check back as I know pallet projects will be popping up soon.

Yep- can't wait for that to be me!

6- Remember when scrapbooking was so popular? I know there are still lots of people who do it, but I've found something I like even better. It's called "smashbooking". It's a combination of scrapbooking,

journaling and stuffing ideas/memories into great looking notebooks. They sell the official smashbooks at places like Craft Warehouse and Hobby Lobby plus you can find stuff online, but I thought I'd try to make one from a composition book bought at the Dollar Tree. I really like the way it's looking, and it's been a lot of fun to do.

My graduation smashbook page

7- One of the things we talked about at lunch yesterday was how much time can be wasted on the computer. I have a tendency to get up early enough to usually say my morning prayers, but then I generally go right on my trusty iPad to check my email, the latest from New Advent, and, of course, Pinterest. After my friend Michele was sharing how she had deliberately chosen to pray her rosary instead of going on her computer yesterday morning, and how she felt so much better the rest of the day. She said there are many days she puts off praying her rosary and sometimes she doesn't get to it. I didn't say anything, but I could totally relate. That is how it's been for me for a while now. After her sharing, I knew I needed to change my morning routine. I don't know how kong it'll last, but I did get up & pray not only my morning prayers, but my rosary as well. It was such a great thing to be able to do & I know my day's gone really well so far. When we make our relationship with The Lord #1 in all we do, even in how we spend our first hours upon waking, things just seem to be easier to handle and joy can flow out of us more!

Be sure to catch up with the other folks who are sharing their 7 quick takes at conversiondiary.com!