So happy even the trees are smiling!

We love Six Little Acres. We really do.

It’s not “much” to look at yet but there are so many things to love about it, especially the trees.

We have a Japanese maple here that is just stunning in the fall. You can see a bit of it here. Sorry it’s a selfie but the magnificent tree isn’t quite dressed for fall yet, so last year’s selfie will have to do. Anyway, THAT’S not the actual tree that makes today’s blog so special. It’s this one.

Ninja Man was cutting wood and he found this! How cool is that?

I named him Otis. I love his crew cut and that little “I’m so happy to be here” smile.

I’m keeping him although it’s been suggested making coasters out of his wee fairy self. Right now he is still a log and he is smiling up at us from a corner in the dining area.

I would love for some of you to comment if you know what (besides of course, LOVE Of Six Little Acres) would cause a tree to do this. It’s pretty awesome, regardless, but if it’s a “thing” it would be great to know.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Kathy Bo

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An Inside Tour Of Six Little Acres!

Hello friends!

Have I ever been waiting to share the “inside” story of our sweet little home on Six Little Acres. Y’all know it’s been a struggle, an overwhelming project at times, but at the same time, a huge blessing.

If you’re new to my blog, welcome. Please go back to my early posts to see why and how we’ve come to this very moment.

And here we are.

Welcome to our home.

Here’s the living room. The rug, sofa and loveseat are second hand, and just perfect for a home with kids and dogs. Here’s the dining area, as the living room, dining and kitchen are all open in the floor plan. The wall decor is from Hobby Lobby, for the exception of the small cross. That was a gift from our daughter in law. She served in missions in Mexico and brought it back to us. The English pub table was already an antique when I bought it in 1985. The kitchen. I love it so much. The sink and faucet are IKEA, cabinets from Home Depot. They close on their own- I love that. The backsplash is vinyl wallpaper from JoAnn. It was expensive so I bought a few rolls at a time. I’m not finished with it and we will be changing the lighting over the sink at some point. The under cabinet lights are wonderful! They just give a warmth to the whole kitchen. That flooring- also vinyl. Y’all. THIS STUFF IS AMAZING! It has held up perfectly for a year now with kids, dogs, chairs scraping, paint spilling and other daily life beatings. It’s throughout the house.

And now for that special place, my Prayer Corner. I have managed to have a designated space for prayer in my home for the past 20 years.

I am shopping for a rug to go in front of my rockers.

Six Little Acres is bathed in prayer.

Now for my studio.

This was the two-bedroom, two-closet, one-bath end of the house. It is now my crafting studio, a place to create and just get away.

And I will share this even though it’s a hot mess- y’all know I’m real, and I’m not one who is Pinterest worthy. This is a creative zone for my daughter and myself. She’s a trained artist and I’m a lifelong crafter. I would be hard pressed to get this area photo-perfect!

So here we go: the desk and pillars are IKEA. That tall black thing on my desk is where I do my YouTube videos. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaFLpNZ_qewwo1x8FUPd21Q

I’ll check that link to be sure it works- but if not, it’s Kathy Bohannon Creatively Blessed on YouTube.

There’s a full bath in the studio, here’s the sliding door. Y’all know I love a sliding door.

IKEA sink and faucet along with an old dresser makes this bath special. Still to come: the master bedroom, master bath, front porch and the EBR. What’s an EBR? Emotional Baggage Room. It’s featured in a previous post!

So this is our 1983 double wide that is no longer mobile, has all LED lights, sheet rock walls and so much insulation the power bills are at a minimum. We plan to go solar eventually.

Update on Baby Wren: she will turn four in just three weeks! What a journey she has already traveled. She is still fighting neuroblastoma but the meds are working and she’s having a great childhood, just like any other kid. SUCH A BLESSING! Please continue praying for her.

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed the tour!

God bless,

Kathy Bo

Shut the front door!

We have doors, y’all.

Well, actually, we’ve had doors for a while now but Ninja Man just installed SCREEN doors!

I’m so excited.

Because each door has a separate screen door, I can have a cross breeze like nobody’s business!

That, and the pups can roam free in and out to their little fuzzy heart’s desires.

Here they come! In case you’re wondering, that’s Monty the Italian Greyhound at top followed by Winston the Boston Terrier. Winston has to consider all the things before he makes a commitment. Miele, at bottom, flies through like her fanny is on fire. That’s the Jack Russell in her. We wish we could wash it out but no. It’s IN and she channels her inner Jack like it’s her sworn duty.

Hoover (our elderly Boston) was napping during this photo shoot.

Where do they go? Ah, that.

Well, Ninja Man and daughter built a HUGE pen for the pups. It only took them a week and they really enjoyed working on it together. Those big gates are necessary so we can move a camper in and out. They have to travel through the fenced in area to get to the hookups.

Now that the pups are happy, we can get back to doors.

So the pup door got installed first. This eliminates the need for us to jump up from time to time so the herd can answer the call of nature.

Next, Ninja Man installed the front porch door but it’s my favorite so I’m saving it for last.

He’s working on this one right now:This goes out to the side of the house where there is a fire pit and chickens.

Let’s talk about that fire pit.

It really isn’t one at all. What it is is a burn barrel and Ninja uses it all the time. There is a small dish type thing we use for roasting marshmallows and stuff like that, but so far it’s just a place in the yard near enough to the garden hose in case of, well, fire.

Side note: Ninja Man asked me what I want for Mother’s Day. I felt a little dizzy for a moment, having never heard the question in at least 37 years of mothering his offspring. In his defense, he is retired now and clearly trying to get into Heaven. But before I could come to my senses, I blurted out “a fire pit!”

Y’all.

So many missed opportunities. But like I said, I was dizzy, taken aback even. AND we happened to be at Home Depot when he asked.

Why couldn’t this question be asked at Jared’s jewelry store for goodness sake? Could be cause we never go there.

Anyway, here’s the front screen door!

(Drumroll please….)

It’s wooden. Ninja painted it gray, to match perfectly with the siding. It slaps shut. The grandLittles have already slapped it shut so I know it works, just like a grandma’s door should!

It’s messy around it because Ninja is still tweaking it here and there, but it’s installed and I’m so stinkin’ happy.

And you know, getting a fire pit for Mother’s Day just feels right. It’s not how brightly the gift shines; it’s how it warms you inside and out.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Kathy Bo

Will they last?

Y’all. I have NO idea what I’m doing when it comes to plants. But still, with help from Ninja Man and a grandLittle, I accomplished this sweet little setting today.

Do I “want” beautiful flowers like in a “real” garden at Six Little Acres? Oh, I do.

Do I “want” to do all the things it takes to help them thrive, like the Master Gardener class I took said I should?

Um. Two things about that:

1) I have raised two kids. Lovingly raised them. Dedicated to the task, I fed, watered and educated them. You know the drill. I did pretty well at all that but probably because you can’t actually ignore kids. They let you know when they need feeding and watering.

Plants? Not so much. They will be strong and healthy one day and flat out dead as a doornail the next. Seeing them thriving makes me happy. Seeing them gasping for breath under my care is a whole ‘nother thing. My family knows not to give me flowers. They would fare much better if we just run over them in the driveway than to put them in a vase on my table.

Nothing says “sucky plant mom” better than wilting flowers. I can’t take it y’all. It’s just too much pressure.

2) Yes, I took a Master Gardener class. It was MONTHS long. Maybe it was years long. All i know is it made my head hurt. It was college level study. My brain got so full I dreamed root systems and pollination.

Did I retain what I learned?

Y’all should know that among my many talents, the only thing I retain is water.

I did use the knowledge (quickly, before I forgot everything) to make a really nice garden and sitting area at one of our former homes.

And then I blinked, and it was all forgotten.

So the mystery here is will these little innocent plants stand a chance. I don’t know for sure but for now they are happy. Full sun, partial shade, who can blame me what with all such demands, right?

Of course, I forgot to water them. But not to worry I’ll get right on that- just like a proper Master Gardener.

And tomorrow, these cute little strawberry plants will join the ranks of mystery survivors at the hands of one former Master Gardener. Just in case, I’ve frozen a bunch from the grocery store. Not the plants, the actual strawberries.

Thanks for stopping by Six Little Acres. Y’all be blessed.

Kathy Bo

Some crafting at Six Little Acres

While Ninja Man has been checking off the never ending “honey do” list, I’ve been decorating this little home.

It’s something I’ve waited so long to do.

As part of the care team for Wren, I drove back and forth many times from Savannah Ga to Atlanta and back again. This lasted over a year, from early 2016 to mid 2017.

More than half of that drive is wasteland, an endless strip of highway that starts in Savannah and winds its way back to civilization somewhere around Macon.

It’s a terribly long drive when you’re alone. Not so terrible when my three pups were along for the ride, but they would snuggle up in the first five miles and not wake until the trip was about over.

So it was these long and lonely trips that I had tons of time to think. I often tried to imagine life at Six Little Acres, where our belongings would be out of storage and unpacked, everything in its proper place.

I knew I’d use the same decor. The budget wouldn’t allow for an overhaul, and that was fine since I still enjoy our old stuff.

Now that we are settling in, (yes, still) I’ve been making a few things that have been on my wish list since those endless highway days. Right now I’m putting vinyl on our walls.

Y’all. There’s something called a Silhouette electronic die cutting machine.

Oh how I love it.

It cuts lots of different media, but today we’re talking vinyl. Wall vinyl.

Here’s what: that’s the Silhouette on the left. The laptop has the design, the scripture is all cut out in a special vinyl that is made just for walls.

Once it’s cut, you just transfer it to the wall, and BAM! You’ve got something wonderful to see every day. Ok, it’s quite a bit more complicated than that, but this is the short version. Once I finished this project, I moved on to the coffee area of our kitchen. That just makes me happy. Both of those designs are in the Silhouette store. I don’t have an affiliation with Silhouette, I just love it and figured someone may ask where I got the designs.

This next one is a whole ‘nother story.

I found an image online and recreated it in the Silhouette software. There were many, many steps involved- but it’s pretty much what I envisioned on those trips back and forth.

If you read or speak French, you’ll know that it says it’s a bakery- however, that is the studio bathroom door. I like to pretend the door came from Paris. It didn’t, but who cares, right?

Anyway, here’s the door, designed like I planned so long ago:There’s a curtain behind the door. It can be pulled closed (as in the picture) when someone needs a bit more privacy than the faux glass offers.

So that’s the latest. It’s been a while, I know, and though we are getting cozy in our little home, some days are really hard. Little Wren is doing well but we are never far from the reality that she is still in treatment.

Still, we have seen an incredible amount of blessings. God is real. He walks before us and beside us. Ask anyone in this family and they will agree, there’s no denying Him and His goodness.

Spring is in full bloom at Six Little Acres, and we have hope.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

Kathy Bo

The Quilt at Six Little Acres

Several years ago, Ninja Man decided to make a quilt.

We have made quilts for our son and son in law, but this one would be lots bigger.

Lots, y’all.

He began stitching out the squares on my first embroidery machine. This machine was anything but cutting edge. It was a challenge to embroider with it, but he kept chipping away at it and finally finished the squares.

And they went into a box.

Life happened, and as the years went by, once in a while he would mention that he needed to finish that quilt.

Then he retired, and we began settling in at Six Little Acres. We finally set up the EBR (Emotional Baggage Room) with tables and space to host Bible studies, crafting groups and family events.

It took him maybe a day to just push all those tables together and start working on his quilt. He sewed and sewed. He embroidered extra details (with our newer, much more capable machine) on the squares. He was in the EBR every day and the progress was amazing.

Today he called me in there to show me the finished quilt. It’s a king, and every single stitch is designed by him.

Even after 41 years of marriage I’m still amazed sometimes at what he can do.

Yeah, I’m kinda proud.

It’s curtains!

We have storm doors on the EBR.

“What’s the EBR?” You ask.

The Emotional Baggage Room, of course.

We didn’t intend to have a room full of emotional baggage, but sometimes, when you’re going through some of life’s biggest problems, it helps to have a place to drop stuff like that off. And yes, margaritas are served in the EBR.

So here we are in this HUGE room we added on to the back of the house. It’s 14X44. It would have been 20X44 but there’s a septic tank that called all the shots while we were building.

Anyway, the EBR was in great distress as it held all the things after we moved that we needed to sort, sell, donate, burn etc. With most of that behind us, we’ve had a few folks to stay overnight. Basically The Boy (my favorite son) and his family, and there was that one guy who was stranded at the airport with Ninja Man… but that’s another story.

Anyway, whenever we have guests, we have to tape brown paper over the full paned exterior doors. Yeah, there’s a fixed glass pane that runs from top to bottom. Pretty cool to gaze over a few feet of Six Little Acres, but not so cool if you’re a guest and the sun slaps ya in the face long before you’re ready to roll outta bed.

We discussed a few options.

Ninja Man wanted blinds. I really don’t like blinds but we have them because- well, Ninja wants them.

The blinds he wanted for those doors were way out of our budget so we looked at curtains.

I sew, but was in no mood to buy yards of fabric. I know how it would go. I’d find the perfect print and it would be $10.99 per yard. I’d need maybe 4 yards. Having to sew it afterwards would just add insult to injury.

So I decided to see what I could get in ready made.

Kohls had these. Two panels for like $20- plus I got a $10 coupon of Kohls Cash to use later, so technically I got them for $10 for the pair.

You can’t beat that y’all.

I stopped at the Dollar General and picked up some super basic rods to hold them up. They were ONE DOLLAR, y’all. ONE.

Sign me up.

Ok, so I got them home, Ninja Man installed the hardware and I commenced to cutting and sewing.

here’s one panel looking pretty cute on that dirty EBR door. It needs love and painting. Someday. but wait.

I didn’t want it closed except when we have guests, so I took the top I’d cut off (the part with the grommets) and made a pretty sweet tie back. Velcro is my friend. And here we are. All finished. There are two doors in the EBR and the other one looks just like this- except it is much, much more in need of some love and paint.

Next plan is to put a screen / storm door on so I can have even MORE breezes in here this spring. The breezes y’all. We planned this so we would feel cross breezes everywhere. We planned well. It’s fabulous.

I’m loving life here at Six Little Acres. Ninja Man is now fully retired and we sit around a lot. We DO talk about doing something other than sitting around, and some days, like today, we get up and DO STUFF.

Other days, we’re just kickin back here at Six Little Acres.

Home sweet home.

Thanks for stopping by. Please share and comment. Above all, please keep praying for our little Wren. She’s still battling cancer and we are still faithful that God has a better plan for her.

God bless each of you.

Kathy Bo

Something new for Six Little Acres

We don’t have a fireplace.

Well, we do, but not one that Santa will utilize to bring us “all the things”.

We COULD have put one in, oh yes we could have – at a cost far superior to our budget. So we said nope, no way, nada.

BUT looky what we found! I am downright wiggly!! It’s electric! Feel free to celebrate with me by doing your very own version of the Electric Slide. Y’all know I’m doing it. I love this so much more than an expensively financed fireplace. Those barn doors (y’all know I heart the barn door thing) slide closed to cover the “fireplace” and there’s – you guessed it- storage for DVDs.

Want a link? Here ya go– and no, I don’t get squat for sending y’all shopping!

By the way, does anyone really buy DVDs anymore? Not a real question. I know we all have to pick up a favorite now and then, but for the exception of the must-have series, never full price here at Six Little Acres. We are retired and I wanna go back to Maine and see Bah-Habuh again, so no new DVDs for me. At this rate I’ll get there about 72 years from now.

Anyway, here’s me building this so-pretty piece o’ furniture. (Disclaimer: total lie. I just took pictures of Ninja Man while he built it. Pretty sure I was knitting at the time.)

But wait. This was how it looked while waiting on some screws that weren’t in the package. Yeah, we ain’t proud- we used it like this for a week. (Pillow pile designers: the grandLittles.)ok, here goes Ninja Man: this guy can do anything.

So that’s the latest at SLA. Well, not really- I have some awesome kitchen stuff to share next! Ninja Man has been busy!

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Kathy Bo

PS: BONUS! super cute puppy pictures: he is a Boston Terrier and goes by the name of Sir Winston Poops-a-Lot.

This morning at Six Little Acres

I said it “rarely” snows here in west Georgia. Man, do I ever stand corrected!

The news said it would happen. The schools closed. I was still thinking maybe a dusting or something. Thinking that, but still making sure we had “all the things” to survive a snowpocalypse. Ie: milk and bread. For milk sandwiches? I dunno. It’s what we do.

Anyway, we woke up this morning to about 3″ of snow. Oh, it’s on top of ice, of course, and we don’t have neighbor guys with snow plows duct taped to the front of their pickup trucks, so we are in for the day- or two.

Anyway, here’s us today. At the humble Six Little Acres.

Thanks for visiting and God bless.

Kathy Bo

PS: our Baby Wren and her mommy (our favorite daughter- disclaimer: we have only one) just returned from Philadelphia for a checkup. She’s doing great! Please keep praying.

Moving Day

Y’all.

Our stuff is finally here.

Here at Six Little Acres.

Oh yes it is. And we, (the Ninja Man and moi) are exhausted beyond imagination.

Here’s what:

We rented a U-Haul and – through U-Haul- we hired two movers. Y’all remember how I’ve mentioned how blessed we are? Well, those two movers turned into three, and the four hours we paid for were finished in three!

That’s a big deal since Ninja Man had worked a full day and needed to go to bed. It’s just a piece of gravel in a mountain of major challenges we have faced.

None of this has been easy, y’all. None of it.

Let’s recap since February 2016. The 15th, to be exact was when Baby Wren was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in her neck. That is the day I will never forget. Baby cancer will do that to you. Looking back, it’s absolutely a devastating event that forever altered our lives. But it is also absolutely the time we have seen more blessings than we have ever witnessed.

With this news, there was not even a doubt that I would help our daughter and her husband with Wren and big sis Phoebe.

We moved away from our beautiful Savannah home, renting it out because it’s too soon in the mortgage to sell. We knew the expenses we would incur would be substantial. We own an RV and we moved into it.

We spent a full year renovating Six Little Acres with horrid contractors. I was in charge of the whole project and had to navigate it from a distance from either Savannah or the children’s hospital. All this while living in the RV near Savannah and me driving to Atlanta every 21 days for 13 rounds of baby chemo.

Our plan was to accomplish this place with no debt. We didn’t make that goal. We had to go into debt and now we will pay that as we go.

We finally finished this build/remodel in late May. I moved in and lived as sparsely as I’ve ever lived. Paper plates. No dresser for my clothes (I’ve successfully used cardboard boxes). Very few chairs, a borrowed pot and pan, no toaster, no washer or dryer and no TV. Everything we owned was in storage and Ninja would bring as much as he could every time he came. Im 58 years old. Let me just say that I am completely over hauling laundry to a laundromat either near SLA or at the campground. Over it, y’all.

We have been married nearly 41 years. Besides the washer and dryer, we have a good bit of stuff even though I pared it down a lot before we moved. Check this out: knowing how I needed furnishings and necessities, Ninja Man tirelessly loaded his truck after working 10 hour days (he had help only once) and drove the 3 1/2 hours from Savannah to our new home. He did this nearly every Friday for over four months.

He’s 64. There were bookcases and heavy boxes.

It’s a lot, y’all.

Fast forward to tonight. I can’t describe how tired we are. I’m too tired to cry. Too tired to put on my PJs. So I won’t do either.

Ninja Man and I left the RV (I was there to get some things done in Savannah) about 9:30 this morning. Instead of sleeping, I’d spent several hours being anxious about the SneakMobile being towed. Oh, I didn’t want to. I didn’t even expect to. It’s just a byproduct of being the sweet and loving control freak that I am.

Anyway, he drove the 26′ truck with The SneakMobile in tow. I drove his huge pickup truck.

Being the control freak that I am, I was surprised that once we were on the road, I really wasn’t worried at all. The SneakMobile is obedient, and followed along as if it we do this all the time.

Here we are challenging another U-Hauler to a duel.

Don’t worry, I never looked at my phone to take this picture. Seriously. It’s just a rare talent that I discovered shortly after the invention of picture-taking-phones.

Four hours later (only 30 extra minutes from our usual time) we were turning in at Six Little Acres.

Can I just tell y’all how big this is? Huge. Huge, y’all.

And that 26′ truck was filled, as momma would say, “to the gills.”

Having spent so much already, I put a call out on Facebook for help. Even though the offer was for pizza-compensation, we had folks eager to come at this crucial time.

Crucial because:

Both Ninja and I have issues with our right shoulders. Mine due to a hard fall on concrete, his a mystery injury. I asked him if he was with his shoulder at the time it was injured, he assured me he was. We have no clue what happened but he will get an MRI next week.

And can I just say that I saw my X-ray and I’m downright skinny up under all this fluff. Skinny bones. Yep. That’s me.

Anyway, here are a few pictures of the “during”. I will start on boxes tomorrow, right after I sleep until somebody makes me drag my drivin-all-over-the-dang-place-paper-plate-using-laundromat-hanging-out-whiney butt out of the bed.

And not a moment sooner.

Thanks for stopping by, and thank you all who have been praying for Baby Wren. Keep it up please, she has a ways to go yet.

God bless,

Kathy Bo.