September 2016 – OLD THINGS NEW

I’m a thief! Yep, that’s right, nothing but a thief. My friend Susan Shipe over at Hope Heart Home does this wonderful thing on her blog where she takes us back through her previous month in pictures to see what she’s learned about life. I did a similar review at the end of August and it was so well received that I thought I would do it again this month, especially since I am on a bit of a blogging break until LIFE sorts itself out.

So here we go :

At the beginning of September I learned that the HGTV Tiny House Hunters program I was privileged enough to be a part of (not on-screen but behind the scenes decorating) would be airing this month, and the other decorators and I threw a Premiere Gala at my friend Leslie’s Historic Overbrook bungalow. Here are a few pictures from that fun event:The Paparrazzi were everywhere . . .

. . . but the security guards were in place . . .

. . . as the staging stars arrived (Isn’t Leslie cute?).

Enough already Mr. Paparrazzi!

Of course the food was fabulous!

By the way, Tiny House Hunters (Tiny With Teens) will have three airings beginning tonight. Here is a LINK to all future showings. If you watch very closely at the end of the show you’ll maybe catch my name in the 2-second credits. LOL!

NFL opening day was September 11th and my beloved Seahawks linked arms in a show of unity during the national anthem. I learned (reinforced rather) something I already knew. My Seahawks are a class act. Go HAWKS!

I hosted an all-day North/South Carolina Consilium meet-up for some of my fellow writer friends on the screened porch.

If you look at the reflection in the window you can see that my Paparrazi man made an appearance this day as well.

My cute friend Holly gets her own picture because she had to leave early, but she also came early and spent the night. I got to show off our local cuisine by taking her to Ice Cream Station on Friday night!

I learned that an online group of friends, some of whom have never before met face-to-face, can feel like old friends in a matter of minutes. Why did I ever concern myself with the thought that there might be a whole lot of silence to fill?

I did a touch of Fall decorating. Not much because the weather is still gloriously warm here in South Carolina.

I learned (and taught others) how to make cute succulent pumpkins.

Since I’m taking a break I won’t give you the tutorial here but I will tell you that the directions were from Country Living. You can find the article on my Fall and Thanksgiving Decor board on Pinterest in case you’re interested. What the instructions don’t tell you is that it is good to give your pumpkins a bath in bleach water to kill bacteria first (bacteria causes quicker decay) and wipe them down every week or so with anti-bacterial wipes or water with a bit of bleach to keep them fresh for weeks on end.

I learned that I could work all day as a cashier at a fabulous porch/yard sale (I’m talking antiques, vintage items, painted furniture, linens, OH MY) and not spend a single penny. Y’all Mr. OTN and I are working with Gazelle intensity on our retirement savings plan.

I learned that I could lend my voice and experience to a very worthy cause for Mesothelioma Awareness Day which was on September 27th.

I’m continuing to learn that taking a break is good, so though I won’t be here much until I am ready to return to regular blogging you can follow me on Instagram.

Today Mr. OTN and I are taking a day trip to the mountains where I’m sure to find some IG worthy shots to share 😉

Blessings friends,