Another Auction

After Paul and I found that awesome deal at that auction we went to, we've been keeping up with the upcoming ones in the area. We check them out online first, look at the pictures and the list of what will be for sale, and then decide if it's worth going. Paul went to one a few weeks ago, but didn't end up buying anything. Today there was one we both wanted to go to in Vernon, TX, which is about 40 minutes away. There were many guns, which Paul was interested in, but they were selling for more than he wanted to pay. We did end up with just about everything I wanted though! I was so excited when we won the bids! And we got everything for about $65, which is even better! The first item is an old wash bowl and pictcher, like they used to have back in the day. There is even a small ledge in the back where you can place shaving cream, soap, or whatever and 2 small candle holders on the sides. We thought it was cool and decided it would be a nice addition to the guest room in our new house. It might not be that old...might be a replica or something, but we still liked it. The next two items are wall decorations. We thought they would also be nice to decorate our new house. Overall, it was a successful day!

Crafting with Vicky

There's a lady in my step aerobics class who shares my love of crafts. Her name is Vicky, and she came to my Stampin' Up! workshop I held about 2 weeks ago (and ended up buying the most of everyone too!). She recently invited my over for a day of craftin' at her house, which was a lot of fun! Our step instructor, Paige, also came. Vicky made lunch for all of us which consisted of her home-made lasagne (made with venison...her husband is a hunter), salad, beer bread, and delicious pumpkin cheesecake. Then the three of us (and Vicky's grandaughter) made precious Thanksgiving turkeys and pilgrims with wood balls, tiny pots, felt, paint, and some seasonal leaves. Here is a picture of what we made. I sure am having fun here with all my free time!That night I took this picture of Beau. He can get into the funniest positions! He loves this chair for some reason and sleeps in it all the time. Paul and Lloyd actually got it from someone who was going to throw it away. We didn't have enough furniture in this apartment when people came over, so they snagged it. It has now become Beau's official throne.

Beauty

This is a very cool video that shows what a little make-up and photoshop can do. I think every young girl and woman should watch this to see how the images in magazines and billboards come to be.

Sudoku

I (Heather) have recently developed an interest in Sudoku puzzles. My friend Joe explained them to me when we visited Andrea and Joe last month. So I bought a tiny pocket size one to carry in my purse, which has already provided hours of entertainment in the car and in the apartment. If you've never tried it, I would highly recommend it...if you enjoy mind puzzles. They are kind of addictive though. Here is the first one I solved. I've done 4 others since this one. The book is "beginner/easy" level, so they're not too difficult.

Tom Steed Lake

Our friends Allison and Lloyd left a week ago, so Paul and I have not been very busy recently. We still have some friends here, but we sure did alot with the Richardsons. Often, they were the ones coming up with fun things for us to do.
This morning Paul was going to go fishing at Tom Steed Lake, but it was much too windy. Instead, we both went to check out the surrounding areas of the lake this afternoon.It's bigger that we expected! Beau came along and enjoyed being outdoors. We drove around for quite a while before we finally found a road leading to the lake. After we knew where it was, we went around to another part of the lake and took a dirt road to the shore line. It was quite exciting, but very bumpy! Here are some pictures of our adventure.

Antiquing

Last week Allison, her mom, and I went antiquing in Mangum. There wasn't much. Most of the shops downtown were closed, even though the signs on the doors said they were open on that day of the week. Apparently some of the shops are owned by people who live out of town and they only open them when they're in town or when something big is going on. Kinda funny. We did find one cute old house that has been turned into an antique shop, but the only thing I wanted was a cute kitten who had been left on the steps by her mom the night before. The lady who owned the shop kept telling me that I could have her, but I had to decline because I knew my husband would not be very happy with me if I brought her home. I'd like to say I've learned my lesson from the last time I did that. Oh, it was tempting though. This sweet little kitten just nestled right into my neck and purred. When I tried to put her down, she meowed and would not let go of my shirt with her claws! Too cute! I want a cuddly kitten! Paul and I actually went to the pound on Friday to drop off some dog food that Beau won't eat and we ended up looking at puppies. We've been talking about getting a play-mate for Beau, but haven't found the perfect one yet.

Anyway, I've been enjoying the butterflies around here lately. The pictures at the top were taken in front of that little antique shop where the kitten was. They had some beautiful gardens. The kitten posed for the pics below. Isn't she adorable?

Pumpkin Carving

On Sunday we had some friends over to carve pumpkins. I carved one with a racoon coming out of a jack-o-lantern, and Paul made a funny face. I did have a kit, so I can't take total creative credit for this work. It sure took a long time though!

What a Deal!

Allison told us about the local auctions around here. She and Lloyd have been to a few and she's bought some good stuff. So on Saturday, Paul and I decided to join them and see for ourselves what they were all about. This one was mostly old collectible items like Coca-Cola signs and gasoline signs, but there was also some furniture. Paul and I have been wanting a grandfather clock for a while now, and there happened to be one at this auction! We bid on it and got it for $35! Amazing! I couldn't believe nobody else wanted to bid on it. I also wanted this old Singer sewing table, the kind where the sewing machine folds into the table and it has a foot pedal and everything, but the bidding got up to over $100, and Paul and I didn't want to dish out that much cash. So we ended up with just our one deal. We spent the rest of the day fussing with it. I cleaned it thoroughly and Paul figured out how the clock and chime mechanism works. There is one small piece we need to replace, but other than that, it is in working order.

I also looked up some information about it online. It says "Emperor Clock Company" inside, which is a company still in business. I found out our model was manufactured from 1969 to early 1978 and was sold as a kit or assembled for you. I think the name of the man who assembled it is on a piece of masking tape inside. I even found a picture of it in a 1972 catalog online! Click here to see the catalog picture. Ours is the one on the right. I looked it up on Ebay to see what it's going for, and people are selling ones like it for $300-400! Now I really feel like we got a deal! I can't wait to put it in the foyer of our new house!

Bulldogs Game

Friday night we went to a Bulldogs football game at Altus High School. I hadn't been to a high school football game since I was in high school! It brought back so many fond memories, and I couldn't stop thinking about how much fun I had in high school. Of course, then I saw all the young kids and realized how I would not want to go back and deal with those teenage emotions again. And I really think it's gotta be tougher these days. So much pressure from the world and media. It scares me to think what the world will be like when we have teenagers. I just hope and pray that we will raise good, godly kids with strong values, who follow Jesus rather than this world. Anyway, the game was fun to watch, even though there really was no competition. The Bulldogs won 59-0!

Pumpkin Patch

On Friday afternoon Lloyd, Allison, Paul, and I went searching for a pumpkin patch. Our first stop was a small vintage shop down the road, which advertised a "Pumpkin Patch"...but not the kind we were looking for. This one was more of a backyard, turned into a cute pumpkin display area. Don't get me wrong, it was very cute and we saw all kinds of weird types of pumpkins and huge gourds. The pictures in my collage above were taken at this first place. However, the prices were a little high, so we decided to shop somewhere else. Our second stop was a nursery a little further away. They had much better prices. While it still was not the ideal "pumpkin patch" we were looking for, we figured it was the closest thing we'd find around here. So we came away with 6 cute pumpkins. Allison and I also had a fun time trying to get the perfect picture of butterflies. I think we probably spent more time taking photos than we did picking out pumpkins! Oh well, that's what we do...to our husbands' dismay (sorry guys). Here are some of the ones I took.

A Horse of Course!

Last Saturday we had a lot of fun horsebackriding in Blair, OK. I have only been on a horse a handful of times, but Paul is an old pro. His family used to have horses on their farm in New York, and he misses it immensely. The picture above shows Allison on her horse, Justice, and Paul on his horse, Blue. My horse was named Chief, and Lloyd rode Concussion. All the horses knew the trails like the back of their hand (or hoof, I suppose), so we didn't have to do much. However, my horse decided he wanted a drink of water at the end and headed over to a pond, at which point I had to take control and steer him back toward the others.This is our friend, Richard. He is the friendliest donkey I have ever met! (Not that I've met that many donkeys...) When we walked away after petting him, he would follow us and wait for more attention, or nudge us! We found out that he was a wild donkey that wandered onto the property a few years ago and has stuck around. What a sweetie! You'd have to meet him to understand the significance of his name though. I'll just say he's a real ladies man.

Quartz Mountain Lodge

I'm a little behind on my blogging. I guess I've just been lazy. Actually, I've been working on a crocheted blanket quite a bit and stamping. Well, to catch you up on our activities recently, last Friday Allison, Lloyd, Paul and I went up to the Quartz Mountain Resort and Lodge to eat at the restaurant there, called the Sundance Cafe. And ohhhh....was it good. Lloyd and I had the seafood buffet with crab legs, shrimp, salad, hushpuppies, different types of fish, about 4 different desserts...and an alfredo chef that made whatever you wanted. I stuffed myself silly.We then went to a nearby campground, set up a fire, and made s'mores! They were tasty, but Allison and I enjoyed eating roasted, toasted (and burnt!) marshmallows even more.

Altus Apartment

A few weeks ago my mother-in-law requested some photos of our apartment here in Altus. I finally got around to taking some, so Mom....this blogs for you! The apartment is not the greatest, it's pretty old, but it's a roof above our heads. I've even got my own craft room so I can keep busy (even though I've spent more time blogging than crafting!). Poor Beau is not happy though. He's used to having a big yard to run around in, and now he's cooped up inside all day. We try to go for walks and give him some exercise, but he spends alot of time sleeping the day away. Soon Beau...soon you'll have a yard again. In the picture above, our apartment is the one on top.

Colorado Trip

Paul and I returned from Colorado on Wednesday after spending a few days with our good friends Joe and Andrea Kazmier. I go way back with these two, as far back as 7th grade! We remained friends through high school and college and are still making memories together! Paul came into the picture when he and Joe went to college together. Joe actually introduced me and Paul, so we consider him our matchmaker! Andrea and Joe got married in August 2004, and Paul and I got married in September 2004. We are blessed to have such wonderful friends!

While we were there we went to a corn maze. We had never done this before and didn't really know what to expect. Turns out it was lots of fun, especially when we made it into a competition! There were 3 mazes to choose from...all cowboy themes. You had to get to each checkpoint (about 6 in each maze) and punch a hole in your card to prove you were there. We were running through those mazes so fast, trying to find the pathway through and get out before the other team. The dogs even had a good time!
Joe and Andrea bought a new house about 6 months ago, and they needed some help moving rocks to their backyard to finish off their major landscaping. So while we were there, we moved 20 tons of rocks from the road to their backyard! Joe's sister Robin was visiting too, so there were 5 of us to complete the job. It took 6 hours, 4 breaks, and 117 wheelbarrows full to get the 20 tons moved. The guys did some math and figured out each barrel was 335 pounds, and each shovel full was about 8.4 pounds. Needless to say, we were all aching the next day! But we were glad to help, especially since Paul loves home improvement projects and hasn't had any to do since we've been in the apartment. The manual labor was welcome. The next day the guys went out to shoot guns and the girls went shopping and to the movies. We saw "The Guardian," which turned out to be a very emotional movie. Good though. Of course, Andrea and I were crying before the movie even started. Hey...those previews will getcha! The night before we left we sat outside around their chiminea and roasted marshmallows. Thanks to the Kazmiers for a wonderful trip!

Before

During

After

Atlanta Trip

These past two weeks have been busy! About 2 weeks ago, I went to Atlanta to visit my parents. It was so good to see them. Man, was I spoiled though. Filet Mignon one night, lobster the next...and I came home with many new clothes. We took a short trip to Charleston to check on the house building progress, and it seems to be going very well. You'll have to check out some of the pictures I took on the trip, or click on the link to our house building progress if you want to see the progress from week one. The picture above is of my parents in the foyer.
While I was at my parents' house, we often sat on the deck as the weather was comfortable. Well, there is a friendly bumble bee that comes every year to my mom's flowers on the deck. He has been named "Buzz." Turns out Buzz has lots of friends, whom I had the pleasure of meeting. They even let me take their pictures as they worked. Here are two of my favorites.