The Week In Review

 Every week is a little different. Some are better than others. This one had its good moments, but challenges are never far behind.

As I noted on my previous post, fall decorating has been happening this week. I love any kind of decorating so I've enjoyed putting out new things and seeing how my older treasures mesh with the new to create a look that is warm and inviting. Part two of the fall home transformation is forthcoming :-).

Back in March of this year I filed my taxes, like many in America. To this day I have not received my refund. Six months and I've gotten the run-around several times. Well, that's not entirely true. The first four months I got nothing at all. The nation was on shutdown, and that included the IRS. I tried calling multiple times but was unable to get a human being on the line. I called the IRS tax advocates who'd helped me last year, but they were closed as well. I mailed in my request for them to help, in case someone was at least collecting the mail. Nothing. Finally, on July 10 I was able to connect with the tax advocates who transferred me to an actual representative at the IRS. What they said was that they hadn't received the W-2's from my employer to verify if the numbers on my return were correct. I couldn't believe it. I personally had filed the quarterly reports, and my boss had made the payments via credit card on their website, so I knew they had the numbers. There was nothing I could do on that end, because once you call and they give you information, you aren't allowed to call again for 60 days. So I texted my boss and told her what was going on.

Within a couple of days she texted me back that her accountant had indeed filed the W-2's but he would send them in again just in case. The IRS finally generated a letter on July 22 stating that my return was being verified for accuracy. This letter should have gone out months before but because of the pandemic it never did. I was so annoyed, because they sent a generic form letter 12 days after my phone call that basically told me nothing new. Meanwhile I was checking regularly to see if my return was processed. No such luck.

September 10 was the 60 day deadline, which meant I could call the IRS once more. I tried a couple of different numbers but all I got was recording after recording and then got cut off. I decided to try the tax advocates again. I was able to get through to them after a 20 minute wait. Unfortunately they weren't able to help me as far as getting my return processed because they didn't consider me to be going through a hardship, since I'm not facing eviction nor having my utilities cut off. Once again, I was annoyed. It's like lending your best friend money and they promise to pay by a certain day, but when that day comes they ask if you really need your money back. The only good thing was that she transferred me to an IRS customer helpline. 

After a long wait I finally was connected to a very helpful woman who was on the phone with me for a whole hour trying to get the information squared away, despite their system going down several times. She was able to confirm that yes, they did receive employment verification, but with the pandemic and shutdowns they were way behind on releasing returns for payment. I couldn't understand how she, in Texas, could see the verification but the processing center, in Pennsylvania, hadn't. This rep told me there was a possibility that something else was wrong with my return, possibly with the credits. Since the system kept locking her out she wasn't able to tell me anything else, but instead gave me a number to call and see if they could help. I called but, yet again, the systems were down. I was told I could call them back or put myself on a 30 day waiting list for callback. I said thanks but I'd call them.

The next day I went out and picked up some groceries from Walmart and Publix. It wasn't a lot, just a few things I needed that I hadn't gotten the week before or that we'd run out of.

This was pretty much the bulk of what I got from Walmart. I did pick up a couple of things that weren't food:

The grays are starting to show again. Ugh. My hair grows so fast, which is a blessing and a curse at the same time. The sponges are the Real Techniques brand, because I can get two of them for $7.50 as opposed to the Beauty Blender that's $20 for just one. Most people will say the Beauty Blender is better quality. That might be so, but I love the Real Techniques sponges and they last me a good while if I keep them clean.

The Publix shopping haul was even smaller:

Basically I went to Publix for their deli ham and cheese which is my favorite, and while I was there I saw they had English muffins and Italian ices on sale, buy one get one free. And everyone knows Publix has the best sweet tea, and it was also on sale. Bonus!

Before going to the grocery stores I stopped at Home Depot. Back in June I was trying to do some rearranging in my living room and I'd decided to switch out a picture I had at the top of the stairs with something more open, like the wall art piece I'd bought for my master bedroom. I like changing things around like that. It's a metal piece and it looked so good in that spot, except that there were several nail holes in the wall that had been covered by the picture but wouldn't be by this metal piece. So I filled in the holes and got some paint from the garage that the previous owner had left. The main living area has two different shades of beige color, one slightly darker than the other. I looked at both paints and picked the one that looked lighter, since that's what I needed for this wall. This is what happened:

 I was absolutely mortified!! How had I picked up the wrong paint?! I looked at both of them again. I even tried the slightly darker one. Then I realized what had happened. The can of lighter paint was over 10 years old. This paint had obviously gone bad and had turned dark. I can't even begin to explain how frustrated I was! Thankfully I found a great piece at Hobby Lobby that covered the spot completely.

The original price for this wall sign was $60 but I got it on clearance for $17.50. I like it because it has no glass in front of it, so there's no glare from the window. 

So, back to Home Depot. I'd picked up a bunch of paint chips and matched the color as best I could, since the label on the paint can doesn't say what color they used and I can't take the spoiled paint because it's the wrong color. I settled on one paint sample that seemed to fit the bill, and I got a sample of it.

Ugh! I was close but this time it was too light. I was gonna add another coat to cover up the dark spot underneath (even though this paint is supposed to be paint + primer) but it would still be too light. Back to the old drawing board.

After I got home from grocery shopping I tried calling the number for the IRS that the rep gave me. I got a recording that said the call volume was too high and call again later. I'm not giving up. 

Oh, and did I mention the tropical depression that formed off the coast of South Florida on Friday that put all of South Florida on a tropical storm watch? Yeah, that happened. Thankfully it didn't amount to anything other than a lot of rain and wind but nothing out of the ordinary. Another bullet dodged. Sadly, it has turned into Tropical Storm Sally and is expected to become Hurricane Sally before it lands somewhere near New Orleans. Praying for these folks.

I got to serve in children's ministry this Saturday. Churches in South Florida are slowly starting to open again, though to limited capacity. I haven't served since the pandemic started back in March. It was great to get back to the kids and teach. 

And that's a glimpse into my week. Stay tuned, there's more to come. Have a blessed week.

Decorating For Fall

 All over the stores, all over YouTube, all over the internet, everyone is saying the same thing: they're excited for fall. Pumpkin spice everything. Leaves changing color. Temperatures start to go down. Sweater weather they call it. Time to break out all the fall decor, the oranges and reds, the blues and grays, the purples and pinks (yes, I've seen purple pumpkins. Very glam). 

Here in South Florida, September doesn't look like it does up north. Not only are the temperatures still in the upper 90's, it's the peak of hurricane season. At this writing there are six - count 'em, six - storms or developing storms just in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The humidity is off the charts so there won't be any sweater wearing for at least another couple of months. And while we have some trees that drop their leaves, most won't till January, and palm trees never change color.

Still, we can enjoy pumpkin spice. And we can pretend it's fall by decorating. That's what I did this week.

I don't usually decorate so early. I like to wait until the first official day of fall. But it was past Labor Day and with this whole pandemic and being stuck indoors all spring and summer, I desperately wanted a change. In my last week in review post  I showed some new items I picked up to decorate, and my Itch To Switch post was all about furniture rearranging. Now it was time to get it all put together.

On Tuesday, the day after Labor Day, I started with the items I had close at hand. These were either in my closet or had just been purchased. I started in my master bedroom.

I flipped the bedspread over to the solid side. I always buy bedspreads or comforters that are reversible so that I get two looks for the price of one. I brought the throw pillows that had been on the sectional and added them to the pillows I normally have here. After adding the throw blanket from the living room, I was done for the time being.

I went into the linen closet and pulled out my kitchen towels.

This cute pumpkin towel is, I believe, from Target. I'm not exactly sure. I've had it for a couple of years now. I thought it looked cheery hanging out of my mixer.

These towels are from Kohl's, also a few years back. They are simple and functional, which is what I want in my kitchen.

I pulled this flower arrangement out that I've also had for several years. The base was a gift basket I'd gotten from a girl at work for my birthday, and after eating all the goodies I filled it with fall colored flowers. It has a Christmas tree on the other side so I can use this all through the holidays.

My little coffee station is little for a reason. I don't have tons of counter space. I know tiered trays are all the rage but it would get too crowded here for me, so instead I have this cake plate from the Target Dollar Spot. I replaced the ceramic doll I had on it with one of the tiny pumpkins I picked up at Hobby Lobby and put another one next to the Keurig. Then I switched out the coffee mug for my favorite Peanuts mug and that was done.

I started out very simply in my office. I use my desk regularly so I don't want a bunch of unnecessary stuff on top of it. This storage box was one I found a few weeks ago at TJ Maxx, and I decided to get it to keep my planners in.

I picked it because it was the right size and the colors were pretty. It wasn't until I looked at it at home that I realized it was perfect for fall.

There's pumpkins on it y'all! How did I miss that?! Anyway, it's on my desk, and I put this little vase on top of it, and I love how it looks - clean and simple.

In the dining room, I used what I had on hand. The only new things were the flowers I'd bought at the Dollar Tree.

The runner is from Big Lots, probably four or five years ago. Under the pitcher is a charger from Walmart that I've also had for a long time, though I think they still carry something similar. I use this instead of a tray; it cost $1.00 and gives it some dimension.

I then pulled out my new pillows and started working on the sectional. I was so excited!

I put the two pillows I'd got at TJ Maxx on either end of the sectional. In the middle I put my new pillow from Costco together with a large pillow I'd gotten on clearance from Target a few years ago and a throw blanket that I've also had for years from Walmart. As a side note - Walmart has really nice throw blankets and they are usually under $10. I stepped back and looked at the sectional. I didn't know if the spring flowers on the coffee table were throwing me off, but it seemed like it wasn't right. It was too skimpy - which is odd because I normally don't like a whole lot of pillows on my sofa. Still, the fun of decorating is moving things around and trying new looks, so I added a couple more pillows.

Y'all, I went back and forth with this several times, but I decided I liked the layered look of the pillows best. I moved the Costco pumpkin pillow over to show the big pillow behind it. I liked it but it still wasn't enough. So I tried one more thing.

I liked this a lot better, but I still wasn't 100% sure. I decided to live with it for a while and see. Then I thought, maybe something in my storage bins will have what I'm looking for...

So that's what I started to do on Wednesday. But that's gonna be a separate post, since this one has gotten long enough! Come back to see what got added, what got changed, and what it all looks like now. God bless y'all!
 

A Typical Breakfast

We've all heard the saying, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." I know I look forward to my morning meal everyday, even though it hardly ever varies. I might do something fancy over the weekend, like pancakes and sausage, or waffles and bacon with a side of hash browns (yum), but during the week I like to keep it simple. This is my typical breakfast most days.

I like having a hot breakfast. Yes, I sometimes will have Special K cereal if I'm in the mood. My favorites are the vanilla almond and the cinnamon pecan flavors. But 9 times out of 10 I will have a bowl of maple and brown sugar oatmeal for breakfast. I make mine with unsweetened vanilla almond milk instead of water, and I add dried cherries to it.  

I put it in the microwave for two minutes, then sprinkle some cinnamon over it. It is so delicious! It might come off as the perfect fall breakfast, but honestly I eat it all year round.

We never had oatmeal when I was growing up. Whenever my mom mentioned oatmeal it was to tell us how sick of it she was. Growing up during WWII, she told us that there was rationing and shortage of food. There were many mouths to feed in her house, and the one thing they could count on finding in abundance was oatmeal. So everyday my grandma would prepare oatmeal with powdered milk until my mom got so tired of it she preferred skipping breakfast altogether. I got to try oatmeal in Puerto Rico at a cousin's house. She made some for breakfast, and I absolutely loved it. There was no convincing my mom, though. She couldn't even stand the smell of it. Maybe that's why I like it so much, because I missed out on it as a kid.

Along with my oatmeal I have my one and only cup of coffee of the day. Once again, I like my coffee hot. I realize that iced coffee is the rage now, just like overnight oats (also known as muesli). But I do not like iced coffee. At. All. I like my coffee hot and my iced tea sweet. My coffee preference is Kirkland's Pacific Bold from Costco. This is an extra bold coffee, dark and rich. I don't like the medium blends, and I hate the lighter breakfast blends. They don't taste like much of anything to me. This is a delicious, strong coffee, and the price (especially when it's on sale) is cheaper than most places. Aldi's has good priced coffee but I find the taste of this brand to be superior.

I then prepare my vitamin cocktail:

My vitamins are also from Costco because again, price and quality. Every morning I take fish oil pills for my eyes. I suffer from dry eyes, and my eye doctor explained that it's caused by a lack of oils in the eyes. Taking fish oil has definitely helped me in that department. I take a multi-vitamin with iron, along with extra vitamin C. After having worked several years at a tutoring center, I learned the importance of taking vitamin C everyday if I didn't want to be sick all the time. Y'all, kids are germ magnets! School would start in mid August, and by mid September every single one of them had some sort of virus. I don't believe in taking vitamin C when I start to feel sick; I take it everyday as a preventative measure. The last thing I take isn't a vitamin; it's a Zyrtec knockoff that I need for my allergies, especially now in the fall.

I like having a piece of fruit with my breakfast as well. Most of the time it's a banana, but I do enjoy having half a mango whenever I can get my hands on one. I add some sugar and powdered creamer to my coffee. I don't like flavored creamers, and since I'm the only one that drinks coffee (and only one cup a day) it doesn't get used up fast enough and ends up spoiling. So powdered creamer it is.

And that's it, my breakfast of champions! It's filling and healthy, and for me it's the best way to start my day. Have a blessed and restful Labor Day y'all!

 

The Week In Review

I know, I know, the week isn't quite over. At least not if you count Monday as the first day of the week. I'm gonna be busy helping my daughter and son-in-law tomorrow and I don't know if I'll have a chance to post. 

This week began the transformation of my home from spring/summer to fall/winter with the rearranging of my living room furniture. I posted all about it in my previous post. Once I'd settled the furniture where I wanted it, I decided to buy a few more items for fall decorating. I had found a few pieces at Dollar Tree in traditional fall colors but I wanted to add a few more things, and I heard Walmart had some nice items. I've bought fall decor from Walmart before so I knew what to look for. Before heading to Walmart I decided to stop at Costco, which is on the way, to pick up some facial tissue and compressed air for my son. Y'all, look what else I found!

Isn't it the cutest thing?! And it has all the colors I'm looking for! Traditional orange, cool toned teal, and the golden wheat color that is so popular this year. And when you turn it around...

...this perfectly stunning plaid! And if that isn't enough, this pillow was only $9.99! They had a couple other designs but this one was by far my favorite. I'm thinking it might go in my bedroom. Or the living room. Maybe even the office. I don't know but I just love it!

After Costco I headed to Walmart but was so disappointed. They were only just taking down all the back to school stuff and had one aisle of fall decor out. None of it impressed me. It was okay, but nothing I wanted to spend money on. I'd gone for two things: pumpkins and florals. The pumpkins were overpriced in my opinion, and there were no florals out yet. It was especially upsetting because all I got was groceries. I could have bought those at the Neighborhood Walmart that is just blocks away from my house instead of heading across town to the Super Walmart. I didn't even find everything I needed! This was my Walmart grocery haul:

At least I was able to get a box of Cinnamon & Pecan Special K cereal. They don't carry that flavor at my local Walmart. I also picked up some frozen/refrigerator items.

Finally found frozen corn! I got my son more of his flavored waters and some salads.

Anyone else take advantage of the produce or meats when the prices get reduced? There's nothing wrong with either one of them. They are close to the expiration date, so the stores would rather sell them cheap than throw them out. I have no problem taking it off their hands.

When I saw that there was no fall decor to speak of, I decided to head on over to Hobby Lobby. I just felt so bummed because I had my heart set on getting fall decor and Walmart was a total letdown. Hobby Lobby certainly wasn't.

I wasn't out to get a huge amount of stuff. All I wanted was some pumpkins and some florals, and even though the temptation was great I stuck to my guns and only purchased what I'd set out for. There are some beautiful fall decorations at Hobby Lobby, and all of it 40% off, so it was hard to limit myself, but God gave me the strength I needed! I got the little cube-full of pumpkins for $7.19 (that's the price I paid after the 40% discount. Original price is $11.99). It has all the colors that I was looking for. The two larger pumpkins in sage green and ivory were $4.19 each. The smaller pumpkin in the shiny bright orange was $2.99. As for the florals, I picked up a bouquet that was originally $14.99 but I paid $8.99. 

I'd looked at some florals that I could make a bouquet out of myself, but this one was nicer quality and ended up costing less that $1.00 more. I also got the larger picks for $4.19 each after discount, so they totaled $12.57. I'd planned on using the floral picks in my bedroom in some large vases I have, adding them to the existing florals. I tried to arrange them with the greenery and the eucalyptus I already had, but it just wasn't working, and again I was discouraged. I was ready to return them, but I tried to work with them a little more. This is what I came up with, and I love the simplicity of the arrangement and the color it adds to the room.

I'm so glad this jug is a neutral color, because it works with any color and every season. I took the greenery out and used only the three picks. Anything else looked like too much. I liked the way this looked, but it clashed with the flowers I had on my nightstand.

The new florals are in oranges and greens, while the flowers on my nightstand are peaches and pinks. While I wasn't ready to go all out fall decorating, I knew if I wanted to keep the fall arrangement (and I did) I'd have to change out this springtime one.

Much better! The fall colors in my sage green bedroom are so warm and inviting!

The pitcher I had here on my nightstand was too small for this floral bouquet, so I grabbed another pitcher from my dining room and swapped them out. I love how the colors of this bouquet play off the gold trim on the lamp. It's getting me even more excited for fall and the holidays!

Today I went to a local tile store with my daughter and her husband to help them pick out tiles for their master bathroom remodel. They live in an older villa, and the previous owner had done very little in the way of upgrading the home. It still had the original 1980's kitchen! Last November they remodeled the kitchen, taking down half a wall, reconfiguring the layout, and putting in new cabinets and appliances. The kitchen looks gorgeous now. Last month they remodeled the guest bathroom, which was in pretty bad shape. The vanity was falling apart. Now it has a coastal farmhouse look with all new tiles, paint, toilet and vanity. This month is the master bathroom remodel. I'm so thankful they look to me for advise on the design and decor. I'll be painting their existing master bathroom vanity, since it's one of the only things the previous owner changed out and it's fairly new. It's also a very solid, well made piece, but the color won't work with the new design they're going for so they asked me to paint it for them. I love design projects so I'm definitely up for the challenge!

And that's been my week. I hope everyone has a blessed Sunday and a calm, relaxing weekend. God bless.

The Itch To Switch

 One of my favorite YouTubers is Ashley from Til Vacuum Do Us Part. She loves switching her furniture and bedrooms around to create a new look, a process she calls the Itch to Switch. I know that itch only too well. As a teenager living with my parents, I would often rearrange the furniture in the living room. Thankfully my mom didn't mind; she knew I'd clean as I went, and she wasn't going to stop me :D. We switched bedrooms a few times, though it was hard because there wasn't a whole lot of space in the hallway of our apartment. Once I was married and had a home of my own, moving furniture and decor or painting a room became so commonplace it didn't surprise anyone. 

When we first moved into our new home, I set up the living room furniture similar to how the previous owner had hers set up. The sectional was against the stairwell. It worked perfectly, especially at Christmas because I wanted the tree over by the sliding glass doors.

When the spring came around and we were stuck at home because of the shelter in place order, I got the itch to switch. I flipped the sectional and put it in front of the sliding glass doors.

I really do like it in this configuration. It's open and welcoming whenever you come up the stairs. But as I began thinking of fall and winter, the holidays and the decor changes, I got the itch to switch again. The Christmas tree, I believe, looks best in the corner by the sliding glass door. Granted, Christmas is still over 3 months away, but I start decorating for fall in a couple of weeks. I couldn't help wanting to start the new season with a fresh look. The itch to switch took over and the rearranging began.

I started by  moving all the furniture off the rug and giving it a good vacuum (pause to appreciate vacuum lines). I got this rug from Costco, I wanna say three or four years ago, and it has held up beautifully. 

I pulled the cushions off the sectional to make it easier to move, and while I was at it I vacuumed underneath. No matter how careful I try to be, dust and crumbs get in there.

I lifted the coffee table to make it easier to move off the rug, and found this under it. My son E's drawings from when he was about three years old. You can't leave them alone for a second, y'all!

I should mention that I was doing this on my own; my son E was still asleep. I don't mind doing this by myself; I'm thankful I still have the strength and ability to do it. Unfortunately, you don't always catch the mistakes until afterwards. Everything looked good so far so I continued moving furniture.

I brought the chair and ottoman over and set it up like it was before but on the opposite side of the living room. 

I replaced my current decor because I'm not ready to start decorating for fall yet. By now I was pretty satisfied with how the living room looked and I began focusing on the dining room. 

My dining room table is a six seater with a removable leaf. Whenever I put the sectional in front of the sliding glass doors, I took the leaf out of the table to make it smaller.

Now that the sectional was switched, I felt like the table looked too small. So I got the leaf and added it to the table. I also changed the configuration of the chairs so they fit properly on the rug.

 By this time, as you can imagine, I was tired. The furniture is heavy, I was cleaning as I went, and I needed a break. I went and fixed lunch, woke my son up for school, and went about my day. As I did, I began to notice something that really bugged me.

It's probably hard to tell from this picture; it might be something that would only annoy me. But the rug was not centered. I don't think it's very noticeable unless you see it in person. The rug was over to the far right instead of being centered in front of the fireplace and bookcases, which then caused everything else to be off-center as well. Every time I walked by I saw it and I knew I was gonna have to fix it, but by then my neighbor was home from work and moving heavy furniture around would disturb him. I waited till this morning and got to work again.

Moving the rug meant moving all the furniture off the rug again, scooting it over and putting everything back. I should have take better pictures, sorry about that. I moved the furniture a bit more to the center and moved the chair and ottoman further back. It looks more balanced now which was what was lacking before. While I was at it, I took my olive tree from the kitchen and put it here in the corner. I really like how it looks. I don't know if it'll stay here permanently; it might go back before the day's end, but I'm enjoying it in the meantime.

I like switching my furniture for two reasons. First, it gives the room a new look without spending any money, and if I don't like it I can switch it back. Second, it allows the furniture to be used more evenly. Let's be honest, everyone has their favorite spot on the couch. Whenever you sit down it's always in the same place. If you look at someone's couch, you can see where that spot is because that's where most of the wear on the furniture is. By moving my sectional around I'm forced to change my favorite spot; it's technically the same spot in the room, just not the same spot on the furniture piece. I also rotate my cushions once a month so that they too wear out evenly. I find this gives the furniture a longer life.

This won't be the only itch to switch going on in my house this month. Fall is coming, and that means pumpkins and pillows and throw blankets, oh my! Come back soon!  

The Week In Review

Years ago I kept a log of what had gone on during my week. I'd been thinking about whether or not I wanted to start it up again, and finally decided I'd give it a shot. Here's a snapshot of the past week.

My son E had his first full week of college. He graduated high school (homeschool) two years ago, but couldn't decide what he wanted to do. I know many kids go off to college and begin studying only to change majors several times or leave before finishing. I wanted E to be a bit more sure of what he wanted to do before starting. He finally decided he'd like to try digital arts so that eventually he can go into gaming. I like the idea that digital arts includes many different employment possibilities for the future so he doesn't have to feel stuck if he decides to try something else. He's doing mostly gen ed's now which he isn't thrilled about but it's part of school. All his classes are online - which is what he did all throughout high school so he's adapting well. So far, anyway. It's only been a week.

I ordered a couple of dresses off of Amazon. I usually prefer going to an actual store and trying things out, but that isn't possible right now with the pandemic. Since I've ordered dresses from them before I decided to go with styles and sizes I'd bought in the past, a style I like because it's comfortable while still pretty.

I wanted some fall color dresses now that we're coming into September, even though here in Florida it won't feel like fall for a couple of months yet. The dresses were both from Amazon but from two different companies. I was most excited and most disappointed with the one on the right. I love the burgundy color and the flowers, and the dress fits great, but it's missing one key component: it doesn't have pockets! I'd bought this style of dress before, though from a different company, and it has pockets. The dress on the left, black with those gorgeous shades of orange and rust flowers, also has pockets. I went back and looked at the description and it doesn't say that it has pockets, so it was just my assumption. I'm keeping the dress because it really is pretty. The fabric is 95% rayon and 5% spandex, giving it a t-shirt kind of feel, nice and light for our Florida weather. 

Before we moved to this new house I purged a lot of my decor because I was downsizing and I knew I wasn't going to need as much stuff (or have anywhere to put it). What I had was good enough for last fall, but now that I have the office/guest room completed, I knew I wanted to add a few items to my fall decor. I went to the Dollar Tree and TJ Maxx on Monday. TJ Maxx offers 10% off on Mondays to anyone 55 and older, and I love taking advantage of that deal.

Since there were two separate living spaces in our old house, a formal living room and a family room, I was able to have two different color schemes for my fall decorations. Both were in the modern farmhouse style, but the living room was done in cool tones of blues and greens while the family room had the traditional oranges and rusts. Whenever we found this house with its sage green accent walls I decided to keep the cool toned decor and declutter the traditional items. It looked really nice but I miss the traditional colors and wanted to incorporate some into my decor again. One of the easiest (and most inexpensive) ways to do this is with florals - Dollar Tree florals to be precise. I love that I can find gorgeous flowers in all different colors at the Dollar Tree without spending a whole lot of money. Here is what I picked up for $11.00:

This is more than just a cute little Hello Autumn sign. It's my color scheme. It does just what I wanted to do: mixed traditional orange with cool blues and greens. The orange is a little lighter than the traditional orange, perhaps, but it works. I used this as a jumping off point to pick my florals:

Light oranges and yellows are so beautiful this time of year! Our trees don't turn all the vibrant colors like they do up north; some do, but not till after Thanksgiving. This lets me bring those colors into the home, and they look so pretty against the cool blue of the blanket.

For the dining room I decided on a darker, richer, more formal color. These are even darker in person, more like a burgundy than dark rust color. I know they will stand out against the lighter colors in the house.

At TJ Maxx I scored some throw pillows that were $19.99 for the pair.

I had seen these in the store about a month ago. I'd even put them in my buggy, but then I put them back because it was an impulse buy and I'm trying not to purchase things that way. I knew the colors would be perfect, but I couldn't remember what I already had in my decor stash for fall. This time I went to TJ Maxx knowing that I wanted a couple more pillows either for the sectional in the living room or for the futon in the office. I was so glad I found these again - they were the last ones! These are great quality pillows, and the covers are removable so I can throw them in the wash if need be. They ended up being $9.99 each which is a steal, and the colors work with all my other decor.

On Thursday, after grocery shopping, I stopped by our local Dollar General. Believe it or not, I've never been in a Dollar General, but I saw Mrs. Falon from Moss Family TV on YouTube do a small decor haul of Dollar General items and I figured I'd go take a look. Our Dollar General had half an aisle's worth of fall decor that had already been picked over, so I was not impressed. I picked up these two little pumpkins...

...but I decided it's not worth going out of my way to go to Dollar General when Dollar Tree is closer and had a better selection. They were $2 each, one for my house and one for my daughter.

And those are this week's highlights. Off for some rest to prepare for the new week. God bless y'all.