Once again, it's time for "What I Learned", a link-up with Emily @ Chatting at the Sky, where we look back on the past month and share the little treasures we gathered along the way. Sometimes silly, always fun. If you want to join in, link up here.

1. If you're going to paint a brick wall, give yourself a lot of time, and a whole lot of paint- or if you're really smart, rent a sprayer (I didn't do that). It would appear to be an easy project. It's not. Every little grout crevice had to be filled in by hand with a tiny sponge brush. It took 3 gallons of high quality paint to do the job but it was worth it. I love the results.

I live in the Seattle area, which can be gray for most of the year, so I like to use lots of white in my decorating- in an effort to take advantage of what precious little light we have. For the past six years of renting, I've looked at the dark brick wall that divides the living from the dining areas, and I've dreamed about painting it white.

Top pictures are Beofre. Bottom Pictures are After- dining room side

As some of you know, we recently bought the house we've been renting. Painting the brick was my first project. It made me so happy to make that change. What a difference! The room looks much brighter- and bigger.

2. Jerry Seinfeld just found out that lemonade stands are illegal. Something like this happened in my town a few years ago. Though I think it's only a problem when you have grumpy neighbors. I still see plenty of lemonade stands around, thankfully, in spite of their illegality. My son and his buddy wanted to do something different this summer. They had a basketball shoes cleaning stand. They learned that a small niche market can be tough. Sadly, I was their only customer.

3. I learned that another way to look at the Sermon on the Mount, in Mathew 5-7, is to see it as a description of who God is. As Christians, we are blessed, not because we successfully live up to those standards, but because Christ did- and we are in Christ. It's a little shift in thinking that makes a big difference.

That's all I've got for now. What have you been learning?

What I Learned- August