SURPRISE!

It seems as though I haven't had my fingers working on crafty things for quite some time, or at least, from the sounds of this blog. That is NOT the case, however. I have been spoiled with several custom orders for my Etsy shoppe (thanks to everyone who has purchased from me!), so all the crafting I have been doing has been INCOGNITO! Another major feat has been to reorganize, prewash/shrink ALL my fabric which, of course, then required to iron and FOLD. A HUGE undertaking. But now it's done and whenever I get a whim to stitch, I will be ready and prepared! That is exciting and will hopefully be a huge help.

Phew. That's done. It's a beautiful sight.

In other news: we got a hummingbird feeder to lure the little guys to our house. And it worked! I love to watch their antics-especially when they are going warp speed and then suddenly hover. They're great.

This past weekend, I had just returned from the farmer's market when the phone rang. It was my brother-in-law on the phone and he said he was 40 minutes away and asked for specific directions!

Now THAT was the suprise of a lifetime, let me tell you! Thankfully, since I have been doing a good job keeping up with the house-the house was nice and tidy and ready for a spontaneous overnight visit. I was, however, stressed a bit about food. Shopping days for me are on Monday's so the house was nearly bare-and Nate and Julie pose the added problem of preparing food for vegetarians.

In the end, it all worked out well and we had a wonderful time. We ordered pizza and snacked on corn on the cob, bean salad, cantalope, all bought from the farmers market. We stayed up late on Saturday night playing Cranium~my favorite game. Oh-it is SO much fun. This weekend made me especially thankful for several things...

~ That the house had been kept clean and orderly every day, so when the short notice call came-there wasn't much to be done in that area.

How important it is for our homes to be presentable at all times and for every need! Not immaculate, of course. But housekeeping should never hinder your hospitality and if a poor kept house keeps you from opening up your home on a whim-or lessens your excitement at a prospective visit-then work needs to be done in that area.

~That I make most things from scratch.

I quick made up lemonade and iced tea with sugar, tea, and lemon juice. I didn't have to worry about going to the store to get soda, or powder mix, or anything like that.

~I had some already prepared foods, ready and waiting.

I didn't have time to make any desserts or snacks-and I didn't really have any icecream on hand. I looked in the freezer and found a perfect solution! My homemade sorbet! (It was delicious!) Then I pulled out some recently canned salsa and some tortilla chips, some recently dehydrated banana chips, and some cheese and crackers for snack.

Because I realized firsthand how much EASIER it was to have the house orderly and food prepared, you can bet I am even MORE motivated to prepare and set aside food for emergencies, to keep the house maintained, and to keep my options open. I learned quite a few lessons this weekend, from this surprise visit, as you can see! :-)

Well, that was my weekend in a nutshell. Hope you have a good one!