Follow the Routine

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feet
Skin care is all about the routine

I’ve spent a good amount of years working in the cosmetic industry as a consultant, representative, employee and customer.  (this post includes affiliate links) The routine is always the same. The products may differ, but the routine is what’s important.

 

Photo by Frank Vex on Unsplash

Science teaches us that the skin responds to our efforts, environments and consistency.

When we drink plenty of fluids, exercise, protect it… we live better.

Here’s the basic facial skin care routine, my two cents are listed in red.

  1. Cleanse twice daily.   Use a cleanser (not soap) that meets your skin’s needs. Moisture in everything… plus oatmeal or lavender if your skin is easily irritated. Exfoliation “beads” (if you work outdoors or are in a dirty environment) – there are cleansers for every skin type! Be sure to PAT dry… don’t rub your sweet skin!
  2. Exfoliate.  When you exfoliate a couple of times each week, you open up your skin to the benefits of moisture and any other treatment you provide.  Without removing the dead cells, the treatments and rich moisture applied will just sit on top… wasted.  There are all types of exfoliants. Every company has their top seller and the price ranges are unbelievable. Shop wisely. Here are my two favorite exfoliate products:  Anew product line has several and it just depends on your preference.  I really like the Clinical Resurfacing Expert Smoothing Fluid.  It’s a product to gently exfoliate and retexturize at the same time!  And, I love the Bamboo Polish Facial Exfoliant from Luminess, as a daily gentle scrub. It smells like banana’s! One tip: don’t use dipilitories or products containing alcohol immediately after exfoliation unless you want to enjoy an uncomfortable stinging sensation and possible redness afterward. 
  3. MOISTURIZE, girl!  After showers, while your pores are warm and cozy and OPEN, take advantage of  opportunity to give your all-over skin a break! Even better, if you can add it IN THE SHOWER!   Then don’t forget to cool your body down before leaving the shower. 
  4. SUNSCREEN EVERYDAY!  Without doubt, we know that the sun can damage our skin in a very short period of time! Fifteen minutes and WHAM! got ya!  Everyday, whether it’s in the Day Cream or the Sunscreen Lotion, there must be SPF15 or more! Personally, a daily SPF15 and foundation which contains SPF are part of my routine. 
  5. DOUBLE CHECK.  While you are adding that excellent moisture, notice if there are changes in your skin appearance or texture. If there are…treat them and if needed, go to the Doc! 
  6. TREAT.  If we are lucky and determined, we live longer.  We may choose to, as my friend said, “look great for my age”.  I agree with her that looking too young is unrealistic and stressful. Looking healthy and not older, is a much better option.  Exfoliation regularly, applying sunscreen every single day and using retinol laced products help us to achieve our best look.  MOISTURE is most important, but applying it to clean, new skin is required.  Choose treatments wisely, from eye creams to dark circle removers and skin tightening products… all require the above 4 steps before benefits can be noticed. 

 

That’s the routine. Simple and straight-forward. Do it and benefit. Skip it and try to make up time later.  Like I said… skin has some self-healing properties.  It can rejuvenate with your attention to the details.  I encourage you to make it part of your effort to live better!

Play in the Traffic to Build Your Business

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Building a business?

Whatever you do, MAKE A PLAN TO PLAY IN THE TRAFFIC!

We learn to make friends as children. Usually with our cousins or siblings, first. Then at day care or primary school. Remember, the teacher reminding us to be kind, to share, do our own work and to be fair?   Those rules in relationship building still work today, especially in business.hannah-rodrigo-320734-unsplash.jpg

So remembering those lessons, let’s consider our business contacts.  What type of person do we want as business partners?  How many new business partners will it take to make a positive change in your business?  What will my new business partner act like in our relationship?

Photo by Hannah Rodrigo on Unsplash

Having identified the type and number of similar behavior-ed partners needed, it’s likely you’ll identify their traffic pattern.

Where do they play?  Do they spend time at ball fields, on running trails or online?  Do they eat at great restaurants, shop at finer clothing stores, travel to places you love?  Do they love a great deal and wear your brand?

Where do they work?  Do they work in offices, dressing trendy? Do they work outdoors and have sun-kissed skin and calluses?  Are they tech-smart or tech-challenged?

Where do they live?  In apartments, with lots of people around them or in single residences, maintaining beautiful yards and entertaining others at dinner? Are they rural, soaking up the peace and quiet or in the hub of controlled chaos or excitement?

Discovery is important as you intentionally plan to Play in Their Traffic!

After you PLAN to create new contacts, build your strategy for meeting your new business partners. Having friends as business partners will definitely be a better way to live.

Practice giving compliments.  Genuine, beautiful statements of truth.  Take a couple of hours to play in their traffic.  Where are your ideal partners sitting on park benches? Where are they having coffee, what are they reading, which walking trail do they visit, which events will they attend and very important… may I join them in social media groups.

That’s where you meet people.  For every person you make eye contact, find an amazing attribute and compliment it!    “You have beautiful eyes”, “you should wear blue everyday”, “what an adorable bracelet”,  “precious children”, “I love the way you wrote that post”, “thank you for helping me understand” – –  be real!

When you make eye (or private message) contact,  your door is open!  

Now practice those relationship building lessons you learned as a child.

Be kind, polite, share, do your own work and be fair in all things. 

So… PLAN.   Choose a time and be prepared with information, conversation starters and yes, your short 30 second blurb about your business (in case the opportunity presents itself) . Enter your plan on your calendar and highlight it when you completed your task. Share your calendar with a partner who has agreed to ask you about your day.

INTENTIONALLY, sit in the traffic until you have met your goal of contacts.    That means you started the conversation, received their contact information and have their permission to contact them again!

How will you continue to build the relationship?

Connect through Social Media… text a “hello, I’m glad we met… here’s my link”, text.

INTENTIONALLY, revisit the traffic area, you’ll know them the next time. If there’s interest in the beginning, you may choose to visit the traffic weekly, monthly or maybe more. Go with your gut. Can this person be my friend, my business partner? Should I introduce this person to another partner?

Follow the rules of your youth: Be kind, polite, share, do your own work and be fair in all things.  BUILD the relationship from contact to friend.

Email or text:  ” I wondered if you’d like to visit when I see you at the coffee shop tomorrow” “I’m thinking I need to buy some new running shoes, do you mind if I ask what brand you wear”. “The friend I mentioned yesterday will be running with me next week, I’d like to introduce you”…  “I don’t know if I mentioned, but I …”

Mail:  Send cards for holidays, birthdays (it’s on FB), etc.  Write personal notes to your new friend, share experiences.

Consistently, work the plan to build contacts.

Consistently, work the plan to build the relationship with each contact.

Change, the “contact” label to “friend”.   By really getting to know your new contact, you’ll build a friend. We never have enough friends.

I’ve read that people find more jobs and opportunities by networking with those they know.  I personally find this to be true.  Every team member I have personally recruited started as a contact and progressed to acquaintance and then friend.  Sometimes it’s months before they need my business, sometimes it takes years. But, always, we are working on the progression of contact, acquaintance and friend. Maybe, they’ll choose me as a partner, maybe I’ll choose them by  being kind, polite, sharing, doing our own work and fair in all things. 

So, go Play in their traffic.  Remember the childhood rules of relationship building and enjoy building your own team… and growing a group of friends that fit in your life, and business, in a most comfortable way. It’s about living better!

 

 

It’s Grandma and Poppie Night!

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Thursdays are Grandma and Poppie Night at our home in Texas.

The two youngest grands use the IPhone (better than us) to call and share their week with us.  It’s truly a blessing to watch them grow, even when we can’t be in the same location. They are so funny and we truly enjoy their laughter over the phone.  I wish I could have stayed in touch with my grandma like that.

 

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Photo by Diego Passadori on Unsplash

Our princess told us about Elon Musk last week. She’s fascinated.  She has real books that are read at her request and after she hears the story, she absorbs the info like a super thirsty sponge.

You should see her eyes twinkle as she thinks of questions to ask. She can tell you when he built his first rocket, the consequences of that take off and his goals for the future, among other things. Then with a bound, she’s on top of the “stage” tapping away and demonstrating the new steps from dance class.

She’s 3!

Isn’t it a great thing that little girls can be princesses in pink tulle, interested in science and get excited about going to dance class in the same day? I’m thrilled for her future.

She and her brother are close… like the sun and the sky. They are brilliantly being challenged by their parents and intentionally led to explore this world of ours.

Times have changed.  I remember my mom saying that same thing: times have changed! Times change, thank goodness. What a boring world this would be if time stood still.

While I question many millennials attitudes about politics and religion, the young parents of today have new obstacles and great opportunities to give their children the future they deserve -just like we did. The challenges are similar, but move faster. The roles are no longer defined, but blended – as it should be.

Both women and men can work for themselves, work for someone else, create their own earning opportunity and write about it! Equally, life is available to be lived. No defining categories needed – just life.  And balance.  Balancing independence and togetherness is just as important as work and home balance.

My own millennials are doing an exceptional job of building our future! I hope they continue calling on Thursdays, after the grands are too busy and I have to resort to texting (will we still text?).

Family is forever and always important – funny how that never changes.

 

Running Out Of Time?

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How many days do you run in circles?

Today was my day. I had three items on my Bling list.

  1. Change the beds.
  2. Schedule social media posts
  3. Listen to 2 development webinars.

Have you used Bling? It’s a fun and Free Messenger App that helps me stay on track… if I keep my phone close.

I find using a digital calendar and keeping the deets in the notes section to be a grand help. Every evening before I retire, I check my calendar, lay out everything I need, enter the quickie notes in Bling and wash my face.

The few minutes that little routine requires, allows me to sleep peacefully and wake up confident. There’s nothing like an organized mind and a clean face on a lavender scented pillow case!

To make it even easier, I have beautiful containers labeled by day. Each time I schedule a follow up or delivery, I place materials in the coordinating day container, schedule any tasks I need to complete before the appointment and relax. When I schedule every step, I know the meeting will be a success because I consistently plan. By the time I’m ready to prepare for that day, I can usually find it already assembled. Just grab my materials for the day and go!

When I was selling, I had a routine.

Each week I’d take time to prepare 30 sets of handouts. Sometimes labeled samples, sometimes postcards, some are brochures or flyers. Each morning, as I entered the office, I’d pick up five or six and determine how they’d be distributed. Maybe they go in the day container or the mailbox. However it gets done, the day was not done until I’d made the contacts.

How can one follow up, if there’s nothing to follow?

As your own organization system takes shape, you’ll be finding extra time for fun or work. Just remember… leave some white space so you can join an impromptu lunch with friends or a video call with the granddaughter. Networking with friends and business associates is never wasted time.

Take it one step further… Here’s an example: Monday I work from home – no scheduling of errands, but it’s a great day for changing the beds, etc. Tuesday is volunteer day, errands are scheduled before and after. Wednesday mornings are a great time for recruiting, as long as I get home to be with my granddaughter by 3. See, you may find breaking down your days for maximum efficiency helpful and while it takes time to get in the habit, it’s well worth it!

Hint: if you prefer a paper schedule use a pencil for flexible appointments, ink for the unchangeable. Using a white eraser keeps it neat. On my digital calendar I end each flexible entry with F (flexible).

Granddaughter’s are not flexible and she loves gingerbread cookies-they go in the Wednesday container!

Becoming the organized master scheduler of your time allows more flexibility for you! Believe it or not… creating an intentionally organized life is… a matter of living better!

Today Could Just Be Different

| lillmi

Today COULD be the day that everything changes.

When I awoke and stepped on the cold tile floor, I thought… “why am I doing this?”

For just a few dollars, I could purchase a small rug that would make my feet warm when I wake up in the mornings.  For a few dollars more, I could probably buy some new house-shoes and for just a few hundred, purchase carpet.   So, “why”?    I’m waiting.

I’m waiting to make the right decision for the new flooring. Of course, the decision hasn’t settled on me yet.  So my feet get cold.  I don’t want to buy a rug, because when I settle on the flooring, I won’t need it.  Same with the shoes.   That’s why.  I’m waiting.

When I started my Avon business, I had waited about 6 months from the first time I thought about it.  In that 6 months, I didn’t make any extra money and I didn’t meet any new friends and I didn’t add any new skills to my life that could make a difference.  The price of the start up kit changed and the incentive offers changed – but I waited.

FINALLY, I moved in the right direction… starting my business with a sweet lady with an English accent that really kept my attention!  I met new people, banked some cash and best of all… added some skills to my life that changed me forever.   It was a gradual change, but it began with that first decision.

If you are waiting on something to ‘settle’ on you before you make an important decision, let me encourage you to move toward the ‘decidin’ part’, as my grandmother called it.

Give it some thought.  Do you want to sell?  Do you want to deliver?  Are you handy with social media? If the answers are yes, and you can see yourself as a sales person and a team builder, get on with it and enjoy meeting others, earning extra money and adding skills to your life.  It will change you.

If you can’t decide, because you can’t determine if it’s really for you… send me a note. We can talk for a few minutes… maybe I can help.  But, first… I’m off to choose a rug!

Step Right In

| lillmi

1986.  The house was quiet when I arrived home. I opened a little Coors light and flipped on the TV. Then, the mailman called. We talked about the weather (it was hot) and the rain (it was muggy) and about mowing the yard.  That phone call lasted for two hours and two minutes, but it seemed like two minutes.  He asked me out, and to make a long story, short…  we REALLY liked one another.

Here’s the tricky part.  Children. Children of a previous marriage. Children of a previous marriage – on both sides.  And, a couple that fell head-over-heels in love and fascination — all in two weeks!

What fun we had trying to plan “dates” around “kid-weekends” (they were opposite weekends).

Most of the “dates” consisted of picnics, fishing trips, dinners at McDonalds – you know the kind of things kids love to do.  A few dates were actually in adult venue’s… but not many. With two full time jobs and 4 step children, we had a great adventure!

I hope you’ll enjoy the visit. Ask some questions-cause we’ve been there. I hope to share our family with you and want you to share your “step” adventures with me. So, Step In, and join the fun!

Hints for Outdoor Event-ing

| lillmi

I love doing outdoor events… or I did, at one time!

Back in the day, as they say, I could set up the tent alone, unload the truck and build a display in no time.

I had the picture in my head and knew how it should look.  I dressed to sell, and be warm. I had my words in their place and knew every price, markup and available swap.

I had to get back in the swing of doing my own event, after a 6 year hiatus while working for the company, instead of myself.

Here in the south, we speak to people, wave and make eye contact as they walk or drive by.  I think I forgot how annoying it can be when they ignore me.  Is it that hard to say “good morning”?  I love speaking to people. I love hearing about their lives and families. I really enjoy talking about my business, and I’m pretty good at reading them and knowing when they prefer to talk about themselves.  I can listen, at least until the next customer slips under my tent top.

I like to think the children who run free and enjoy the weather and my wares are learning something. Like how to put it back, don’t touch, and don’t spill your drink there, please. I can teach them quietly while mom enjoys my neighbor’s booth – maybe she will stop here and take them to the next vendor.

Ants and rain, wind and rude people, sunburns and unsupervised children, do not stop dedicated vendors who love the carnival atmosphere and the joy of sharing with others.  There’s a “look” between them. Something akin to the momma “looks” when you slipped and said the bad word or answered inappropriately.  Then, if you watch carefully, you’ll see the smile of understanding spread across the vendor’s sun kissed faces as they empathize.  It’s still fun and always profitable.

So, here are my tips for a successful vendor event:

  1. Buy the great weights for the tent. Whatever they cost… we saw several types.  We opted for the Pinterest suggestion of using Gal jugs of water, tied to the tent. It’s economical and we will be using them in our Keurig.  I saw someone use the judysame type jugs with pebbles.  I have to say with the gusts we weathered this last weekend, they were not enough.  Picture this: my friend, Judy and I were hold the tent poles at one time, like we were water skiing! We really had a great laugh over the wind.  I learned, from the vendor across the way, that using bungee cords to join the two tents together by the legs and top rails gave us the extra support we needed. There are weights made for tents… canvas, plastic and a variety.  The best one we saw was a “runner” between the two side sets of tent poles.  The gentleman had 2 2×4’s from front to back poles and bolted them thru the tent poles.  Then they used the wooden runners like pallets for their stock.  It took him 5 minutes to install and 5 minutes to tear down.  The weight was sufficient and easy to transport.
  1. Set the tables INSIDE the parameters of the tent. Not on the edge… allow room to drop the tent canopy over your products for evening or weather.
  2. A great booth, allows the customer to ENTER , get out of the sun and rain and have a soft spot to walk. They’ll stay longer. They’ll shop. If you have an extra seat or bench – perfect!  I saw where a vendor had purchased puzzle shaped pieces of mat (like for a kid’s room) and created a great floor for her booth. Of course, she was among the last of the vendors to finish packing – but she always had people standing in her “store”.
  1. Keep your money in your pocket, not in a register or money box. Use that for straightening and lightening your load.  You’ll do better if you sell at the product display and make the change right there.
  2. Add the tax into your price and round it to the dollar amount… no time for coins at the carnival.
  3. Have a crew of loving family and friends help you break down. Order pizza and beer and celebrate your success. You’ll be exhausted after several days of living outdoors. I use clear plastic tubs with lids to carry product. Most are the same size, to stack easily.  Each tub has a product brand or name on the paper taped to the inside.  Give each helper a cloth to dust the products before packing. They’ll be dusty. Others can help you load tubs in no time, when they don’t have to ask questions.  You can inventory them the next day. Ask them to set the tubs outside the parameters of the tent when they are loaded and snapped shut. You’ll be able to drop the tents while others are loading tubs.
  4. When possible, I rent the tables from the vendor event organizers. This minimum expense and the accompanying service of setting them in place, is well worth the cost.  When I have to carry my own, I use the foldable white plastic type, as they are lighter and travel more compact.  I always buy the 4 foot, making my booth set up more flexible.  I take a thick mat to even the surface between tables.  A piece of cardboard does nicely, too.
  5. Pack the tents neatly! Fold the canopy to lessen the wrinkles, sweep it off, if needed and stand the frames carefully. If the canopy is wet, place a reminder on your calendar to unpack it for drying at home. It’s your home away from home and you don’t want any unexpected issues when you arrive at the next event!  We have seen a number of tent styles used successfully. Your choice depends on your product, space and set up staff.   The guys across the way lifted my top poles because I’m so short.  I appreciate them, but I really need to figure that part out. I will.  I used the quick pop-up type and bought it at Tractor Supply, near my house.  It came with a rolling case and clean, crisp white canopy.  I borrowed a canopy with my booth brand on it and substituted it, giving our booth some clear identification.
  6. Dress in layers and put your hair back! You never can tell what the weather will do, so be prepared. Don’t overdo your makeup, again… the weather.  Be fun, simple and enjoy the ride. 
  7. FOLLOW UP is the key to continuing success in days to come. Be sure to have a reason to collect contact info. Shoppers are suspicious, but if you have a great reason, they’ll give you name, email, phone and sometimes a mailing address.  Then, be ethical with that information.

Vendors like each other.  We make deals and swaps and help each other when the tent blows.  It’s a cool team of people you probably didn’t know 24 hours before.  When vendor neighbors leave, they do so knowing they may never meet again. However, if you are lucky, you’ll have a plan to see each other down the road.

Take time to take it all in! All the smells, jokes, people-watching pleasure, and opportunities that come to you are profit. They are experiences you didn’t have yesterday.  Make notes on your calendar and consider whether it would be good to rebook right now!  The world is small.  There’s always a new inspiration, a new friend, your next potential partner, and of course, the sell… profit comes in many ways- don’t miss out on any of them.

PROGRESS

| lillmi

The girls have been working hard, while I watch, look and plan.  I’m not a gardener, but I love looking at it, planning things I’d like to see and showing it off to my friends, who know me well!

Those friends know it is a chore for me to stop what I’m doing and water the pretties that adorn the ground in front of the brick.  They know that I’d much rather pay someone else to make it so. Don’t laugh… I would much rather be planning a booth at the fair and gathering help to run it.  But at the end of the day, I want to sit with my love in the “garden” and relax while the fur babies run and play.

So, as you can see, there’s a little progress on this day.first copy of shrubs

After removing the overgrown and ugly, the “girls” cleaned and cleaned to remove roots, grass and amazing finds (old bottle opener). They named all the critters that scampered out. PRINCE CHARLES is a lizard and Queenie is a butterfly.  DAMMIT is a sweat bee, and I forgot the King Snakes’ name. Before laying the black “plastic”, as I called it, we took a day and Ronnie (our token man on the job) sprayed for weeds and whatever.  That’s ALWAYS his job at this house.  Now we are ready for the plastic.   Of course, it has a name!  Vigoro Weed Barrier Landscape Cloth.  I chose it because it let the water through. I don’t want to be wasting my time watering plastic!  I picked it up during one of my many trips to Home Depot to plan this project.  It took 90 feet and then I bought another roll to do a smaller area in the yard, you’ll see later.

Next, they added the black lava rock.  I couldn’t believe how inexpensive it was and since our roof is black and some of the brick is charcoal, it makes a nice visual contrast. I hope there’s not an obvious negative reason the cost is low. If there is… I missed it.  So, for now, I’m good with it.  I hope the sharp edges will deter the critters from digging up prized goodies.

I bought the lava rock at Lowes.  The salesperson kept trying to sell me on the red because our dirt is redish and may stay neater and brighter, but I still love the black.  I looked at river rock, white rocks, egg rocks, mulch, and more mulch! Who knew there were so many choices.  The black lava rock was around $5 per bag and we have now cleaned out their inventory and are patiently waiting for more to arrive.  It’s lightweight, so it’s not a problem for our handy strong girl to move it from the truck to the garden.  In fact, she took care of that little chore before we even knew it!

I took off plant-shopping and found some lovely boxwoods at our local Hudnall’s Nursery in Pittsburg.  Steve and Sherry are the nicest people and Steve is full of great advice.  We ended up with dwarf crepe myrtles, something purple-ish and the boxwoods. They’ve been in the ground almost a month and they are doing fabulous!  He suggested we use Landscapers Fill instead of peat moss, for the nutrition.  I think it was a great suggestion, and again very affordable.

Next… the septic pipe.  Yes, we live in the country and there has to be a clean out spout.  Of course, we weren’t at home when this happened, or it wouldn’t be in the middle of the yard!  So, the delimma is how to hide it, but still have access.  We had the 16×8 cinder blocks, so down went the plastic and round went the block.  You’ll soon see the end and the change of this project.

We only have a couple hours a day to devote to this, as everyone has another job… except me!  I have a side gig.  It’s my Plan C.  I stay busy, helping others. We talk about how they can build their direct sales business and I share long proved tips and techniques.  It makes me feel good to help, and it’s inside, where it’s clean.

I’m still looking for ideas to dress up the septic clean out spout, so if you have any, just post them below.  Diana wants to build a gnome out of clay pots. We have tall dogs, so I kinda love the watering system that would fit nicely over the spout. It could be portable, but could we easily mow around it?

So, for now… the breezes are slowing as the evening comes.  I’ll be lighting the keva soon and we’ll have a toddy in our garden. Everyday brings us closer to the goal. Each day we invest in it and each day it grows more comfortable.  The Girl Project is coming along nicely.

It’s a Girl Project

| lillmi

I finally settled on a project.  Well, I’ve chosen several.  Visiting with my friends, the other night, I learned it’s pretty common to “bite off more than you can chew” when you first decide to retire.

So, I’ve backed up to regroup.

Three months ago today, my company gave us notice and I had to decide what my future would look like.  I’ve always had a plan and always known what my DREAM was, but not necessarily when it would happen.  So, I’ve been given the opportunity to reflect and rethink the dream.

So, now… while consulting in direct sales for my “gig”, I have time to complete a few projects that will lead to that picture I see in my future.

To have what I desire, I need a pretty back yard.

It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just neat and comfy with very little maintenance required.  I really do not like yard work, but enjoy the benefits… whether I earn them or buy them.

I called a friend that loves to do outside work and has some great ideas.  She’s known me for 35 years, so she knows my likes and dislikes.  She listens to my concerns and my goals and encourages me in a different direction when she knows there is upkeep on the horizon.

The message I left her went a little like this: “Hi, Sherry. I hope you are ok today. My yard and my future well-being require your assistance. I hope you are free to visit soon.”

THREE DAYS LATER, she got the courage to call. She knew it meant work, because she knows about me and outdoor work.

She asked lots of questions and I found the answers. She has another friend who loves that work and would like some extra bucks, so she can help.   It’s a girl project!

Day one comes and goes… no one shows up  – not even me!

Day two arrives with the overgrowth being yanked from around the house and add-on.  Progress.

No more overgrowth!
No more overgrowth! Only the hydrangeas will remain. The rose bush will be moved and the grapevines come down tomorrow!

They decided to save the rose bush, and use it in another area. The hydrangea stays, the monkey grass is relocated for a bit.

The numbers of critters in the garden are the main reason I don’t like gardening.

I watched with goose bumps as the spiders (of all kinds) scampered across the house, tools and ground to find a new dwelling.  The King snake had to relocate and the lizards were moving quickly to the other side of the house.

We picked up the soapy water bottle to allow the bees and yellow jackets to crawl away and find a new home and I hate to admit it, but we sprayed that huge nest of wasps from under our chairs!

yellowjacket
Imagine! Sitting on the rusty old chair and a baby yellow jacket lands on your knee. Then another, and another. I turned over that chair and discovered their hiding place where all the little fellas were handing on for dear life! Soapy water, wet their wings and allowed them to scamper off to another location. I don’t like them, but they have a purpose.

The mosquitoes are another story, so we grabbed the Bug Guard and the Skin So Soft to be fully prepared.

Our brick has so many colors, I’m excited to shop for ground covers, plants and “littles” that personalize an area.   But, that’s another day.  For now… I feel comfortable walking outside where the plants used to reside and see the cleaned area with the weeds slowly giving way for a future oasis that is lovingly referred to as our girl project.