The End of Another Week

Today marks six weeks post surgery and I am so happy to report that I've made MAJOR strides in my recovery since Monday.  My gait has remarkably improved and my limp is just ever so slight.  I guess those therapists know what they're doing.  :-)

I have spent several months purging and reorganizing every corner/closet/shelf in my house, gearing up for the Mother of All Garage sales.  Last week I totally reorganized every cabinet and drawer in my kitchen which resulted in three more huge boxes of stuff for the sale pile.  Very little in my cupboards are as they were and and I'm really liking the new arrangement.  Here's a photo of my new spice arrangement.  I didn't get a "before" photo but trust me, everything spilled out onto the counter as soon as you opened the cabinet.  (my apologies for the bad Iphone photo)

There are three of these racks total (one is hidden in the back).  The jars were included with the racks but I created all of the labels myself.   Did you happen to notice how much extra room I have on the shelf above it?  :-)  It's no longer dangerous to open this cupboard.

This weekend is the RAK Soiree hosted by my very good friends Kelley and Hans.  For the past 5 years they have opened their home to upwards of 150 people for an evening of food, drink, music and dancing.  Each person donates a $20 at the door and is given an opportunity to cast their vote for a local family/charity in need of some extra support.  (Attendees are provided a list of recipients from which to choose from.)  At the end of the night a random drawing is held to determine the lucky recipients.  We usually collect between $1500-$2000 each year and surprisingly, to the best of our knowledge, the past recipients have yet to figure out the benefactors  :-) The tears of gratefulness and joy that it brings to a deserving family is beyond imagination.  I'm so proud to call these generous hosts my bestest of friends.

Last night, being the crafty friend, I was called upon to decorate these lanterns that Kelley found at Lowe's for $3 each.  I really, really love how they turned out and can't wait for tomorrow evening.