Heavy heart. Fallen Officer.

The officer stood and faced his God Which must always come to pass...
He hoped his shoes were shining Just as brightly as his brass.
"Step forward now, you officer, How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek? To My Church have you been true?"
The officer squared his shoulders and Said,"No, Lord, I guess I ain't...
Because those of us who carry guns Can't always be a saint.
I've had to work most Sundays And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent, Because the streets are awfully tough.
But, I never took a penny That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime When the bills got just too steep,
And I never passed a cry for help, Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me, I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place Among the people here...
They never wanted me around Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here, Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much, But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was a silence all around the throne Where the saints had often trod...
As the officer waited quietly, For the judgment of his God,
"Step forward now you officer, you've borne your burdens well.
Come walk a beat on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

Last night, we received the news that a law enforcement officer was shot and killed.
My sweet husband is 3rd generation law enforcement, and our youngest son is 4th generation law enforcement. 
Incidents like this, hit close to home.
Brothers in blue.

Our hearts and prayers go out to his wife and 5 kids, and his fellow officers. 
For their hearts are heavy.

For more on this story click the link : http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=28549367

My Secret Life as an Old House Renovator.

 Before and After:
 Spencer's new house.
Well, just about the best Christmas present ever!
Spencer closed on his house on December 24th, at approximately 2:30pm.
Since that time, we've been elbow deep in hot water, soap, dust-pans and brooms, Spackle and paint, dumpsters full of rubbish.
Multiple trips to the Home Depot, and hardware store.
Hauling 'new' second hand furniture that Spencer was lucky enough, and wise enough to purchase from a professional decorator that had recently re-married and combined households.
Sure, we had to go about 55 miles from home to the lady's house {one way}, but it was totally worth it!!

Above is a picture of the fireplace after countless hours of scrubbing.
The "After" picture.
 Brooke, took on the task of making the old fireplace sparkle, and uncover the beauty that lay beneath decades of soot and ash.
She is amazing!
On her hands and knees, bucket and scrub brush in hand and bottle of "Awesome"... scrubbing away.
Layer by layer, uncovering beautiful fired ceramic tile. Art Deco style and with a beautiful patina.

 "Before" fireplace.  So much grime, soot, and ash.
Such a shame really, that it fell into such dis-repair, and neglect.

 "Before" picture of the fire place. You can see that there are a few badly damaged hearth tiles that will need to be repaired, or replaced.

 After: Looking towards the sitting area, from the living room.  This room is really quite large.  Approximately 30 feet long.
You can also see the beautiful detail of the coved ceilings.
What a tremendous amount of work this space has been.
 My sweet husband, and Brooke spent hours and hours on ladders, scrubbing the soot off of the ceiling and pulling hundreds of staples out of the ceiling trim.  Then it had to be painted twice with high quality paint, with built in primer. 
Turned out amazing!

 During:  The above picture is of the built in China cabinet in the dining room.
Spencer has been working on it for a few days.
He really wants to get his sea-glass colored goblets in it.

 Sea-glass colored goblets.  Set of 10
"Hand blown" by his "dear friend" that cannot be replaced if broken, because "sadly his friend passed away".
That's the provenance that Spencer is sticking with.
He's put the fear of death in everyone, if they are ever break one of his goblets.

Even though, we were fortunate enough to find the goblets at a thrift store.
He is "wise beyond his years"!
He looks for bargains, and is able to see the value in recycling items, and saving the difference in price.
So proud of him!

Spencer , gingerly washing his favorite goblets.

I cannot wait to get started on his kitchen.  Of course we need to paint EVERYTHING.  Re-glaze the sink, put in a new faucet, caulk windows, re-surface his counter tops... etc.. etc... etc...

Of course there is a certain type of person that takes on a renovation. 
A person that wishes to bring new life to vintage homes,  to see an old home gain the respect and admiration that it once had.

" I am as susceptible to houses
as some people are susceptible to
other human beings. Twice  in my life
I have fallen in love with one.
Each time it was as violent and fatal
as falling in love with a human being"
            ~Katherine Butler Hathaway, the journals and letters of the Little Locksmith

To all of us who just can't help it,
who would still rather live in
and old house even after fixing one up,
remember the words of the poet:

"He who loves an old house
never loves in vain."
                ~ Isabel La Howe Conant, "Old House"

So, there you have it.
I will be working away.
Helping Spencer bring back the charm of his old house.
Of course, I plan on posting more pictures, and filling you all in on the detail.
In the meantime, we are still trying to sell our house, and close this chapter and begin a new one.

Love to all....
Kerin

Attitude of Gratitude:
~How very grateful I am for the ability to reach, stretch and renovate still!!  Yes.. I feel it deeper in my bones, than I used to... but the ability to do so is a blessing of great worth, that is not lost on me!!
~I'm so grateful for my renovators best friends: diet coke and chocolate.  Bless you diet coke makers, and M&M makers ***smile**.