A to Z Blog Challenge - H

Hello my friends! Just a little reminder that tomorrow there will not be a letter for the challenge and also... David and I are escaping for a few days for a little anniversary trip this weekend! YAY!! I'll see you at the end of the weekend!!

This post will be a short & sweet one! My ESCAPE awaits me!! :)

Letter H

Heaven

I love reading about Heaven and what it might be like when I get there! I am not ready to die anytime soon, but I am not afraid TO die. I know that my life here on earth is only temporary and that Heaven is my ultimate destination.

Hearts

I love hearts! Always have. I am very attracted to anything that has a heart on it. Back when we lived in Atlanta, my decorating style was more "country" than anything else, and most things that were country had hearts on them! If you came to my house today, you would still find hearts scattered here and there, but not as many. Hearts remind me of love, and love reminds me of God's love.

Houses

Ever since I can remember... I have had a "thing" for houses! I grew up living in Apartments so I guess that is where my fascination for houses came from. I especially loved houses that had stairs!! They were like mansions to me! I also remember having a furniture catalog from the Ethan Allen store. I would spend HOURS going thru it and imagining myself living in each room! I also spent a lot of my time designing houses. I would draw them out on paper, in a notebook that I kept. When I got older, I would buy magazines that had floorplans in them. I kept them for a long time, until we moved to Columbus and then I threw them away. Now, I miss them!

Hand-Me-Downs

Growing up, I would wait each Summer for the big box of hand-me-down clothes to arrive from my cousins in Florida! My mother "made" most of my clothes, so to get this box of "store bought" clothes was a thrill for me! My girls didn't wear too many hand-me-downs when they were little. Not because I didn't want them to, but because we didn't have anyone to give us any. Ashley's best friend has been giving Ashley her hand-me-down's for years now and Ashley LOVES when her friend cleans out her closet!! Then, Miranda gets the leftovers of what Ashley doesn't want. It works out well!

Hamsters

As a child, not only did I have my Toy Fox Terrier, Penny... but, I had hamsters! I loved them! I don't remember in total how many I had, over the years. Probably 3 or 4. They either didn't live long or they would escape from their cages and then never found again! (They really are crafty little critters!) The one that I had the longest was named Queenie. She was blonde. I had her for about 3 years until she finally escaped and was never found again! I cried and cried!!! When my girls were little, we tried having hamsters. It didn't work out too well, so we said NO MORE!

My Love for Houses

I love to watch the HGTV show - HOUSE HUNTERS. My favorites are the episodes where the families (or singles) are looking to buy a BIG HOUSE. I don't really watch the ones where the home buyers are looking to buy a tiny condo, in a big city, for a bazillion $$$!! The big houses are more fun to look at. I love to try and guess which house they are going to choose, and of course I TALK to the TV like they can hear me! .... "Choose #3!".... "Why did you pick THAT one?".... "Why are you being so picky?"

For as long as I can remember, I have ALWAYS loved looking at houses and houseplans. I think it come from the fact that I grew up living in apartments all my life. When I was little, I loved the house on THE BRADY BUNCH that Mike Brady "designed". (Hey, Mike! How come your beautiful house only had one bathroom for 6 kids?? And... why would you design a house for a family of 8 (or is it 9, with Alice?) with only 3 bedrooms?? (or 4, if you count Alice's bedroom.) I also loved my Aunt Doris' house because it had STAIRS and it was BIG! While my mom and dad visited with my aunt, I would wonder the house and pretend it was the house on the Brady Bunch. I was always Jan. I loved her hair!!!

When I got a little older, I would design my OWN houses. I wish I still had some of my designs. Of course, they were on paper (That stuff made from trees that you can write on. It's a rare thing these days, I know!) Today... if I were to design a house, I would get a "Home Design" program for my computer. (Actually... that was one of the first programs that I bought when I got my first computer!)

I used to buy Home Design magazines all the time, too! I had stacks & stacks of them and would look at them and DREAM. It wasn't until Hubby and I built our first home 11 years ago, that I finally threw them out. ---- Now, I miss them!

I am starting to get the "new house itch" and I'm thinking about our next home. Of course, what I would LIKE to have and what we will be able to afford (someday) are two different things. But, hey.... a girl can still dream! Here is a list of criteria's for my "Dream House".....

• 2200 sq feet or more
• 4 bed / 3 1/2 Bath
• Country Style or Craftsman Style
• Main Floor Master
• Foyer
• Fireplace
• Great Room (Kitchen open into family room)
• 1/2 Bath on main floor
• Full Basement
• Front Porch
• 2 or 3 Bedrooms upstairs, each with it's own bath.
• Bonus Room or area upstairs
• Large laundry room, with a window if possible
• 2 or 3 car garage

I'm not asking for much! But.... like I said... A girl can dream, right?