Or something like that. ;-) I used to have a perfect record of just how many days' work we had put into this joint but that program fell apart quite some time ago. Things are looking better around here all the time and I think the next week or two is going to be really exciting... but only on the main floor. Then we'll have to start going upstairs again. As it is, I never go there. In fact, I quit going upstairs a couple of months ago. Someday I'll have to start going there again. Bummer. Ha!
I'm way behind on the blog again. I was going to try to upload pictures tonight, but if I do I know it'll take FOREVER and I really need to get to bed at a decent hour for a change. So I'll just tell you what we've been up to, then some other time perhaps I'll be able to show you.
So backing up two and a half weeks to Friday, March 2nd... According to my notes it was a very low-performance day. The whole family had been through whatever sickness has been going around and were just feeling pretty ~bleagh~ all day. I would work for about 20 minutes, then take a break for about an hour. Ha! Pitiful.
James and Sam left for Phenix City that night while I stayed home with sick-o Joe who was deemed too unhealthy to attend the District Convention down there. That means he and I stayed home "alone" that night. (Katie was still staying with my Mom & Dad in Cleveland.)
Saturday, the 3rd -- I painted the dining room red… AGAIN. Joe was feeling pretty well and helped me stain the 100+ pieces of bead board for the dining room, then I also stained the counter tops and the bead board for the backsplash as well as all of the trim that we had. It was the first day in over a week that I had felt back to full energy and I just worked and worked and worked, thinking all day long of how proud my husband would be of me and how excited he would be to see a-a-a-a-a-a-all of the work that had been accomplished. He walked in that night and asked, "Did you stain all of the wood???" I happily replied, "Yes, I did!!!," beaming with pride in anticipation of his surprise and appreciation. He then said, "Even the extra piece we got, but could've taken back if we didn't need it??? That's $28, Bec!" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It wasn't very funny at the time, but we've had some good laughs over it since then. There are times when I think we could really use some marriage counseling--me with my silly expectations and him with his complete unawareness of my feelings. ;-)
Sunday, March 4th -- A regular Sunday, it looks like. Except that I spent all afternoon working on Katie's schoolwork. She's really been struggling in school lately, but I didn't know it. I've not stayed on top of checking her work like I should since being all tied up with house stuff, and she didn't tell me she was having a hard time. So I had to go through several weeks of work and find exactly what she's struggling with, reassign tons of stuff, and I even took several pages of notes of things for her to study that will hopefully help her out. It took HOURS, but it really needed done. And I've learned my lesson (I hope!) about not making time--no matter how busy we get--to stay on top of their school stuff. It makes lots more work for them AND for me! In fact, when we got home from church that night I was up until after 1:00am still sorting through it all to get us back to where we needed to be.
Monday, March 5th – It was house cleaning day because I had company coming! Ha! It's crazy to "clean" a house that's in the throes of remodeling, but it still had to be done. Mom got in that evening and had asked if the Ridlespurges could come over because she needed Brother Ridlespurge's help with the slide presentation she'd be giving at church on Wednesday. When they were finished getting all of that stuff worked out she pulled up the clip of Dad reading his “book” from Couples' Retreat this year. I'd already seen it, but it's sooooo great. :-) Later that night we wrote down our agenda for the week. It’s fun to do that. It’s the first step to the thrilling little game of seeing just how differently your week can pan out from what you planned. Late, late that night, just before bed, James found a double oven on Craigslist for $300. Whoa!
Tuesday, March 6th -- First thing that morning I called on the oven and set an appointment to go look at it at 1:00. In the next few hours I managed to accomplish nothing. I talked to a repairman about the possibilities with the used stove (worse case scenario questions), I helped children with school, and I gave a tour of the house to Brother Hawkins who had shown up to return our week whacker. The only thing I actually accomplished at the house was getting the foyer (also the room where we store—meaning DUMP—aaaaaaaaall of the tools and paint supplies and vacuum attachments and stain, etc., cleaned up a little bit.
James and I left the kids at the house with Mom and went to check out the oven. It's only about three years old and seemed to be in good shape over-all. Going with what the repair guy told me, we deemed that it would definitely be worth the money to take a shot on it. ~scary~ We stopped by HHGregg on the way home and found a little fridge that I loved. The set up was GREAT, but it was only 18.2 cubic feet instead of 21 or whatever the slightly bigger ones are. It needed some thought. By the time we got home from those stops (along with a few others including Schlotzky's for lunch--after all, we were within 10 miles of it... HA!) Mom had accomplished lots at the house. She had stained the ceiling boards for the kitchen, fixed a spot in the bedroom (paint touch-up), primed foyer spots and the door, polyed kitchen cabinets—one or two coats, I can't remember which--did the blue paint trim in the foyer, coated the dining room with red… AGAIN. Has anybody been counting how many coats of red paint have been applied in there?
When we got home I put yet ANOTHER coat of red in the dining room (do we have a full inch of paint on the walls in there yet?) and then I started painting the foyer blue. Dark, dark blue. I LOOOOOOOOOVE IT!!! :-)
We also spent a considerable about of time trying to THINK. There were still some big decisions to be made, particularly in the dining room. None of the options seemed good at ALL until very late that night. We finally came up with one that was better than the rest, so we settled on it. Then at the last minute James pitched in an additional thought that fixed the problem entirely and now I LOVE what we’ve come up with! (We hadn’t actually done anything yet, but I loved what we were going to do.) So the evening ended with Mom and I prying all of the baseboard trim loose from the walls in there. That was a little tougher than expected and resulted in multiple holes in the wall. Each time the crowbar plunged through the sheetrock it caused us to laugh a little harder than the last. I love working with my Mom. Things never go right, but it’s okay. Everything can be worked through, and we just enjoy the ride. That’s the way work should be. :-)
That wasn’t really the end of the evening. We then sat with our computers and visited until nearly 1:00. That was dumb. Then we went into the kitchen to look at one more thing, got all excited about the handles and knobs that had arrived that day and had to screw the knobs into the five big drawers in there. It's sooooo cute!
Wednesday, March 7th -- I put the second coat of poly on the planks for the kitchen ceiling before we got into the BIG job of the day. We hadn't gotten all of the things done that "needed" to be done first but it was time to forsake all and start laying floor!!! Mom taught me how to install the laminate flooring and we managed to get about ¾ of the dining room done before we stopped to get ready for church. Except for being extremely painful for people with bony knees (!), I really enjoy that job. It's fun to do and is very rewarding. Mom calls it "instant gratification." Whatever it is, I like it a whole lot. And James is thrilled that I have acquired this new skill so he'll never have to pay anybody to do it again. Ha!
That night Mom gave her slide presentation about their trip to Israel, Turkey, and India. I think everybody really enjoyed it. I did, and I'd already seen most of it before. :-) We visited after church for a while, then the crowd ended up at Zaxby’s--a chicken place kind of like Chick-Fil-A that my family just sort of discovered and decided they like.
It was fun to come home that night and ooh and ahh over the new floor. As much of it as was there at that point, that is.
Thursday, March 8th – James was gone most of the day shopping for dishwashers. We had to install the dishwasher before we reached that area of the kitchen with the new floor so he finally HAD to buy one. (We've looked at sooooooo many appliances, but never seem to buy any until we're forced into it!) I worked on school with the kids that day and discovered that I have a cheater child. It required some unpleasant consequences and extra schoolwork assigned. Sam had been cheating for several days but was pretty slick about it and I didn't catch him right off. Once confronted with it he confessed and broke down and started crying. He told me how sorry he was and said that he hadn't been able to sleep at night because he just felt so crummy. I hate it when the kids do bad things... but I love it when they learn the lessons and discover how conviction and repentance work. Sam came to me the next day and said he slept GREAT. :-) Anyway, while I was dealing with school and kid stuff, Mom stained wood. It was afternoon before we FINALLY started installing floor again! It took FOREVER to lay very little floor that day. We had lots of hokey little cuts to make and it slows things wa-a-a-a-ay down. We stopped at 8:00 to play a couple of games with kids, got them to bed, then worked another hour or so.
Friday, March 9th – Mom did lots of miscellaneous paint projects that day, James put up trim and bead board in the dining room, and I finished laying the floor in the kitchen!!! Wa-Hoo!!! Mom needed Brother Ridlespurge again (to transfer files or something?), so we called and asked them to bring us dinner! HA! How rude is that?! I was sooooo excited about having just finished the dining room/kitchen floor that I went out into the garage and did some pretty impressive maneuvering to get to our dining table. It would take too long to describe where the table was in the heap of belongings that is packed tightly into the garage, much less what was involved in getting it OUT, but the most important part is that I managed it! And we now have a TABLE!!! In my dining room!!! I even wrestled the rug out of the garage, so our table sits on it's rug in my dining room. I was soooooo excited. The guys put the legs on the table, rolled out the rug and positioned the table on top of it, I stood back and looked and thought, "...They look so TINY!" Ha! The big dining room really dwarfs what I always thought was a nice sized table. No matter--I love it and I'm soooo thankful to have a dining table! Though we could only get to one chair. Everything in it's time, I guess. Still, it was exciting to have company and be able to eat in our dining room on our dining table. :-)
Saturday, March 10th – Mom poly-ed trim, then I poly bead board while Mom put the first coat of red on the back door. She then packed up and we took her to Chow Town for lunch before sending her home to Cleveland with a thousand thanks for yet another week of hard labor at the Monstrosity. She is the best--and most talented--Mom EVER. Not to mention how amazing she is to put up with James through it all. HA! We had such a great time with her.
Once bidding Mom adiou, we drove up to Lewie’s Used Appliances, still in search of the perfect refrigerator. In the end we decided to go back and buy that little fridge I had really liked a few days before. It's smaller than I wanted, but has split shelves (more versatile—better use of space) and was MUCH cheaper than any of the others we were considering. I was hoping to talk James into buying a microwave too, but we didn't want to pay as much as we would have had to pay there at HHGregg. So we stopped at Target to look at microwaves there on our way home (it was one of the few places we hadn’t already looked), but the one we would have considered wasn’t in stock. Story of our lives. ;-)
That night I cleaned up the house a little after our week of wrecking it again. I even made the kids haul some of their junk down to the basement. There's just too much STUFF accumulating in the living room and it's always a mess because there's no place to keep it all. The only other news of the day is that Sam found two ticks while he was showering. ~Bleagh~ Here we go again.
Sunday, March 11th – I hate Daylight Savings. ;-) After morning service we came home and I put on my work clothes and extended the kitchen floor about four feet to make James happy (he hated where we had ended the laminate before) and I still had enough time to sleep for 2 hours! Then I got up and had a few minutes to “plot evil” as Katie kept saying. We came up with a couple of great ideas to have some folks do at “Talent Night” at church that night, but when we got there we found out that we were going to keep things a little more “churchy” and not goofy this time. That threw our plans right out the window—we didn’t have anything churchy planned! Ha! So it wasn’t quite as fun this time as last time, but it still raised over $200 for Missions and that was the purpose of it all.
Monday, March 12th -- I felt like being in bed all day long. Sooooooo tired. But things started off all happy and joyful because our refrigerator was delivered!!! The kids were ecstatic. James left directly to run some errands and when he returned he had ham and bologna and cheese and milk and several kinds of juice. The whole family helped unload it all into the shiny new fridge so we could get it back out immediately and have lunch. :-)
I helped James put the ceiling in the kitchen (it is soooooo pretty!), then took the kids to the library. Got home and found James putting the very last light in the kitchen. I LOVE MY KITCHEN!!! I can’t wait to have the countertops finished and be fully functional in there. It just gets prettier all the time. And now it’s BRIGHT and pretty. :-) James says it’s too bright, but he doesn’t know anything about such things. It’s PERFECT. We then hung the light over the dining room table. Oh, happy day! I love light. We’ve had a lone painter’s light dangling from wires in each room for months now and it’s so exciting to see real fixtures—and more light—in these rooms!
James went to get his hair cut that night while the kids and I had sandwiches again--from our very own refrigerator!!! :-) Somehow the weariness I’d been feeling throughout the day transformed into ~bleagh~ and I began feeling very sick while we were eating. I wasn’t even able to finish my sandwich—I told the kids to get everything cleaned up when they were done and I headed to the bedroom and went straight to bed, intending to just lay down until I got to feeling better. Next thing I knew it was morning and I had slept a full 13 hours!!! Whoa! Apparently Katie had started feeling rather sick, too, and was up most of the night making trips to the bathroom. I’m glad I was able to sleep my problems away—I woke up feeling GREAT the next day. Thank the Lord! I didn’t get any of the things done on Monday that I had planned on/needed to and had LOTS to do on Tuesday!
I didn’t get most of it done, of course.
Tuesday, March 13th -- I ran some laundry. Helped kids with school. And then assisted James with installing the countertops. Now they need lots and lots of love. It’s going to take some staining, lots and lots of sanding, maybe some waxing, and then several coats of sealant.
And I started ironing!!! Wa-hoo!!! First time I've done that (other than a solo piece here and there) in weeks and weeks. Of course, I didn't put much of a dent in the pile that night and I haven't done it again since then so... ;-)
Wednesday, March 14th -- I spent most all of the day working with Katie on her school. She's starting to get things rolling the right direction now, so we're both much happier. :-) I painted blue in the foyer again. Not done yet. We had the Body of Christ, chapter 6, at church that night. The kids had been in Children's Church for quite a while when Sam returned to the sanctuary sporting a sign that said “Sam is NOT in trouble! We just finished up back here” or something like that. Ha! Sister Washburn wanted to make sure Sam wouldn't have to sit under condemnation for the rest of the service from parents who would never believe that he wasn't sent out of Children's Church for being bad. :-)
Thursday, March 15th -- Sister Bishop called bright at early that morning and said she was putting her work clothes on and heading to Bessemer. Surprise!!! :-) She knows we know NOTHING abut what to do with all of the incredibly overgrown vegetation we inherited with this house and she had offered to come help us with it--she's so good at things like that and amazingly knowledgeable. We quickly got everybody ready and ran some necessary errands, then got home about an hour before Sister Bishop showed up. For the rest of the afternoon she had James and all of the gang outside working with her, hacking down shrubbery right and left. I managed to stay indoors, staining countertops again to darken them, staining some other boards, then poly the beadboard for the backsplash. Sister Fender showed up after a while, then Sister Bishop ran to pick up some dinner for everybody. She brought home some rotisserie chickens and all sorts of fixin's to go with them. It was a wonderful dinner. I fixed my plate and sat down, then asked James what time it was. "6:50," he said. We had Ladies' Bible Study/Prayer Meeting at 7:00! Ha! So I scarfed down my chicken and fixins, then grabbed my bowl of salad and ate it as I drove to the church. Sister Ridlespurge had put sooooo much into fixing up a room nice and cozy like for our meeting. It was really nice and I'm really looking forward to these meetings--it's going to be such a blessing. I loved visiting with the ladies that night and we're looking forward to perhaps going through a book together or something like that. I just wish we could have these meetings twice a month instead of just once. ;-) I got home after 10:00 that night sooooo tired, but it was time to proof the Evening Light. I did my best. I'm afraid it wasn't very good! Ha!
Friday, March 16th – We worked outside all day that day. I enjoyed driving James' new tractor/mower thingie, hauling branches and debris down to the edge of the property and dumping it in a big pile--and the kids loved taking turns driving it, too. With Sister Bishop as our coach we got the whole front yard all cleaned up and squared away. Things look soooooo much better than they did. Not to say things look good... In fact, they look pretty bad right now--but it's still so much better than before! This place had been so neglected and all of the trees and bushes were completely out of control. After being trimed back to proper size there is now no green left on anything--just bare branches and trunks. I can't help but imagine that all of our shrubbery is embarrased and feeling rather naked right now. Ha! Still, it just looks soooooo much cleaner than it did before and Sister Bishop assures us that things will grow back and start filling in, but be in proper dimensions and the right size for a change.
The Rickers showed up that afternoon and visited with us while we worked, then we cleaned up and went to Cracker Barrel to celebrate Sister Ricker's birthday, Sister Bishop's birthday, and the Rickers' anniversary, all of which had taken place in the past two weeks.
Saturday, March 17th – We had District Convention in Bessemer and it was excellent. It was all excellent, but James’ message especially good, I thought. I enjoyed the fellowship after Convention, but was sooooooo tired. We came home and I worked some more on my VLB service for the next night.
Sunday, March 18th – I didn't teach Sunday School. I had asked Sister Dudley if she'd fill in for me because I knew I wouldn't be able to spend as much time prepping for it as I needed to. She was happy to help out (which makes it so much easier to ask her!) and I was so blessed to be in the big people class. :-) The Powells' daughter and her husband were at church and we really enjoyed having them in class with us. They had lots of input and it was great. After service we went out for Chinese with the crowd, including Richard Barnes who had joined us for service that morning. We came home and I spent the rest of the afternoon finishing up on my notes and slide show for service that night. I felt like it went okay that night, but it was too long. The last 10 or 15 minutes were pushing it. I should've skipped some of the stuff in the middle. I hate it when you realize it too late! Anyway, I didn't realize it was a downer of a lesson, but I had two guys approach me after service with some interesting remarks. The first said, "Is this sort of what Ladies' Retreat is like? Because I feel like dirt!" (That won't make sense to most of you--one of our ladies this last year wanted to know why she paid good money to go to Retreat so she could be made to "feel like dirt," though I think she just meant convicted ;-) -- HA!) The other guy came and said he didn't feel like dirt. He felt like stubble. I had talked about the quality of building materials and what we contribute to The Church of God: gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble. I couldn't figure out why everybody seemed to only hear the bad stuff (James said some people looked kind of stone faced after service, too), but the next day I was talking to Mom about what all I addressed in the lesson and hearing it all in list fashion made me realize that perhaps it was a little much. Maybe I did give ‘em both barrels! HA! I had no idea. I hope it was all received well. :-)
Monday, March 19th -- We had a carpet measurer guy come out (that's so exciting!), I helped kids with school, sanded my countertops (a new step--wa-hoo!), then stained them one more time.
Tuesday, March 20th – Helped kids with school, helped James with bathroom fan (what a relief to finally have THAT in!), sanded and polyed bead board for backsplash again, then sanded and polyed all of the beadboard in the dining room a second time. That took a while. I had some Fiddler on the Roof songs stuck in my head, so I had Katie look it up on YouTube. The kids had never seen it before and actually showed interest in it so I told them they could watch it. You learn so much about Jewish culture and it really is interesting. But then you spend the next several days suddenly throwing your arms in the air, snapping your fingers, stomping as you walk and singing, "If I were a rich man...!" :-) I enjoyed listening to it as I worked.
That night we all loaded up and stoped by the auction, but there was nothing much of interest. We walked next door to the Foundry and I found a jean skirt for $1.25 as well as a black dress skirt and a dressy top that fit better than most things do nowadays. ;-) We went to Wal-Mart for paint thinner, only to come home and discover that I hadn't been out like I thought--we still had some paint thinner here. Oh well. Can't have too much paint thinner. :-) I put the first coat of Poly on the countertops before bed and they already look GORGEOUS!!! I just love’ em. This is going to be the bestest kitchen ever. :-) And so cheaply remodeled. I love that, too. :-)
Wedensday, March 21st – That's today. This mean's I'm caught up again! Wa-hoo!
Today we got the vent hood installed for above the oven, James started installing the beadboard backsplash, we had a different carpet guy out to look things over and have now decided to buy the carpet from Home Depot but have this guy install it, called Home Depot several times and spent a considerable amount of time on hold before finally speaking with somebody competent--but he didn't call back tonight like he said he would. ~sigh~ In happier news, for lunch today we had pizza bites and frozen buritos--heated in our NEW MICROWAVE! I failed to mention that when we went to buy paint thinner last night we came home with a microwave. It was super cheap so we decided it must be the one. ;-) We had already bought frozen foods in anticipation of one day having a microwave (ha!) so we enjoyed christening it for lunch today. Right now the microwave sits on the floor in the kitchen because the countertops aren't finished, but soon it will be in it's rightful place. I also called an appliance repair guy and made arrangements for him to come and install my "new" double oven and fix the ignitor tomorrow. I then spent an hour or two scrubbing the oven inside and out and getting it looking nice and clean and shiny and ready to go into my very own kitchen. We brought it in the house and slid it into it's rightful place even though it will have to come out in the morning when the guy gets here to work on it. I just wanted to see it there. And it makes me sooooooo happy!!! I have squealed all afternoon over it! I'm just overwhelmed that God actually answered that prayer. Double ovens are soooooo expensive and James told me early on that if I wanted one I'd better really pray because we just couldn't afford it. Well, I didn't spend lots of time on it (!), but I did mention it to the Lord a time or two. And He DID it! It just AMAZES me that God loves us sooooo much and answers soooooo many prayers--even for things that are unimportant in the big scheme of things, and things that are more "wants" than "needs." I feel overwhelmed. The stove cleaned up so nice (looks almost brand new!) and even after paying the repair guy we will have about the same amount (or less?) invested in this stove than we would have paid for a single oven. ~sigh~ I'm sooooo excited!!!
Okay that's about it. Got to get to bed. But I made it. CAUGHT UP. ~aaaahhhhh~
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Cute Again
Katie was all worried about my reputation so I thought I should take the time to fix my blog. HA! Actually, I just started Googling like a mad woman tonight, trying to figure it out and got all obsessive and couldn't pull myself away until I got it done. Truthfully, what's going on right now is way too PINK for me, but it's bright and cheery and that's what I was looking for, so this will have to do for a few weeks anyway. It's officially spring now and there's no sense holding on to a snowman template any longer. We didn't exactly have winter around here (at all) the past three months and the wintery template helps me pretend and stay happy. ;-) Of course, it's been in the 80's this week and not feeling wintery (or even springy or fally, unfortunately!) and my imagination isn't THAT good even with the help of a snowy template. Ha!
Too tired to really blog now, but the big news is that I just restained our countertops for the last time (got them all sanded today) and they are now ready to start polyurethaning! Wa-Hooooo! It's only been a mildly productive day around here, but I'm hoping for more tomorrow. (Hahahahahahaha! Will I never learn?!) Either way, my counters are already gorgeous and they'll be better yet when they are finished and usable. Soon. Very, very soon.
Maybe. ;-)
Too tired to really blog now, but the big news is that I just restained our countertops for the last time (got them all sanded today) and they are now ready to start polyurethaning! Wa-Hooooo! It's only been a mildly productive day around here, but I'm hoping for more tomorrow. (Hahahahahahaha! Will I never learn?!) Either way, my counters are already gorgeous and they'll be better yet when they are finished and usable. Soon. Very, very soon.
Maybe. ;-)
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
As a Side Note...
I have NO IDEA what I've done to my blog, how I did it, or how to fix it. I'm also way too tired to keep trying to figure it out. I also shouldn't be devoting time to such things at this point in my life. I thought it would be a quick, easy switcheroo. Nu-uh. Someday I'll have time to get it cute again--assuming that's possible. Until then, I'll just be very, very happy that all of my pictures and blog links and info are still available. It was all GONE for a few very scary moments. I'm glad it's back. Even though there are only about three people who ever blog and most of my links say things like "posted 2 years ago," somehow it still feels relieving to have them over there. ;-)
Sinking Again
... in the vast abyss of bloglessness, that is. It's not nearly as dismal as it sounds. It's probably only dismal to my mother. She doesn't like it when I fail to blog. I really don't have time to blog tonight. I'm, ohhhhhh... a month behind on the ironing. Around the house we wear work clothes that don't need ironed, but our going out/church clothes are ALL in a huge mound in my beautiful (though cluttered at the moment) utility room. I have GOT to start getting caught up on some of the ironing and tonight is the night. I picked up a couple of movies from the library yesterday, so I'm planning on putting one on and grabbing the iron here shortly. Like, real shortly--or I'm going to be asleep! Ha!
But before I go, I'll post a couple of pictures of the ceiling in the kitchen. Mom's been wanting to see it. I LOVE IT. :-) We got it up yesterday and today we got the countertops all cut and secured in place. Now they need LOTS of TLC. Staining, sanding, sanding, some more sanding, waxing (maybe? --Do I wax them even if I'm using Poly afterward, Mom? To get the same color as the other wood that will be waxed? They look way too "light" to me right now--and I haven't even started sanding yet!), and then several coats of sealant. Anyway, here we go...
When the kids and I got home from the library yesterday James was putting up the last of my kitchen lights. I LOVE THEM!!! I was so concerned about the kitchen being DARK when we took out all of the horribly ugly fluorescent lights. You know, the ugly things that give really great light. Ha! So I requested lights above the cabinets and I now have GREAT light in there again--and it's sooooo pretty instead of sooooo ugly! :-)
Ta-da!!!!!
I can't wait until James (we) get(s) the box all framed in up above. And finish the countertops. And get the stove cleaned up and hooked up. But look--A REFRIGERATOR!!! That came yesterday. The kids are ecstatic. Maybe a little beyond ecstatic. We celebrated by filling it up with ham, bologna, cheese, and several jugs of milk and various juices. Today we added pudding and applesauce. HA! It's still kind of a sad way to live, but soooooo much better than before. One day soon we'll get a microwave and then we can start filling the freezer with things like Little Juan's Burito's and Totino's Pizza Bites. Then one day we'll get the stove hooked up and... still not be able to cook anything because ALL of my pots and pans and dishes and utensils are packed away in boxes on the back wall of the garage behind loads of other boxes and at least 12' of furniture. Good planning, hu? We're working on a solution to that one. Until then, we're sooooo thankful and happy to be eating ham sandwiches for lunch and cereal (with milk instead of dry--that's what the kids have been doing for weeks now!) for breakfast and we have no complaints at all. Life is good around here and getting better all the time. :-)
But before I go, I'll post a couple of pictures of the ceiling in the kitchen. Mom's been wanting to see it. I LOVE IT. :-) We got it up yesterday and today we got the countertops all cut and secured in place. Now they need LOTS of TLC. Staining, sanding, sanding, some more sanding, waxing (maybe? --Do I wax them even if I'm using Poly afterward, Mom? To get the same color as the other wood that will be waxed? They look way too "light" to me right now--and I haven't even started sanding yet!), and then several coats of sealant. Anyway, here we go...
When the kids and I got home from the library yesterday James was putting up the last of my kitchen lights. I LOVE THEM!!! I was so concerned about the kitchen being DARK when we took out all of the horribly ugly fluorescent lights. You know, the ugly things that give really great light. Ha! So I requested lights above the cabinets and I now have GREAT light in there again--and it's sooooo pretty instead of sooooo ugly! :-)
Ta-da!!!!!
I can't wait until James (we) get(s) the box all framed in up above. And finish the countertops. And get the stove cleaned up and hooked up. But look--A REFRIGERATOR!!! That came yesterday. The kids are ecstatic. Maybe a little beyond ecstatic. We celebrated by filling it up with ham, bologna, cheese, and several jugs of milk and various juices. Today we added pudding and applesauce. HA! It's still kind of a sad way to live, but soooooo much better than before. One day soon we'll get a microwave and then we can start filling the freezer with things like Little Juan's Burito's and Totino's Pizza Bites. Then one day we'll get the stove hooked up and... still not be able to cook anything because ALL of my pots and pans and dishes and utensils are packed away in boxes on the back wall of the garage behind loads of other boxes and at least 12' of furniture. Good planning, hu? We're working on a solution to that one. Until then, we're sooooo thankful and happy to be eating ham sandwiches for lunch and cereal (with milk instead of dry--that's what the kids have been doing for weeks now!) for breakfast and we have no complaints at all. Life is good around here and getting better all the time. :-)
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Does it Still Count?
If no actual work occurs but the day is full of errands and decision making, can it still count as a work day? Or at least a productive day? I would love to think of it that way, but it sure doesn't feel that way!
Yesterday didn't score very highly on the accomplishment chart either, though I didn't know it at the time. I did sort of run from one project to the next and then on to another, so it's hard to feel like you really accomplish anything. I know I painted the dining room with the first coat of red paint--after having primed it the day before. I also started staining the bead board for the bottom half of the wall--with a stain other than Special Walnut! I don't think I've ever stained anything with another finish before. It's the stain that Grandmother and Granddad used on all of their wood and it's what I've used on all of my wood since working with them. I can't ever smell it or work with it without thinking of them. I always smile and sometimes cry. Anyway, we are using Special Walnut in several places but for the bead board I wanted something really light and golden looking instead of dark and rich. I can't ever remember the name of the stain, but it rhymes with dip stick of nitwit--one of the two. No, really--that's all I ever remember about it. Anyway, I got started staining the bead board nitwit :-) but there's still a ton of it to be done. I think I stained two out of ten or eleven packs! I can't remember what else I did--except laundry! I did some laundry just because I could. Oh, happy day!
The part I DO remember about yesterday is what James did to my freshly painted red walls in the dining room. This is the room that used to be covered top to bottom with glass mirror squares. We ripped them down (Sam did, actually) and then Brother Hopkins came and fixed the drywall for us. He told us over and over again to be sure and call him after we put on the first coat of paint so he can come and look things over and fix whatever got missed. You just can't see the flaws until you put paint on it. (Who rigged up that law?!) Well, the red paint did show the flaws--enough of them that James couldn't stand it. I was perfectly willing to live with them and be happy (you can always hang a picture over the really bad spots--ha!) knowing that even imperfect, things are soooooo much better than they were before! I insisted that James NOT call Brother Hopkins for multiple reasons. First of all, he has done sooooo much for us already and I wouldn't think of asking for more. He would be upset if he knew I said that so Bessemer people, DON'T BLAB! ;-) Secondly, I can't bear the thought of going back to step one: sheetrock. I am so ready to proceed and am in no state of mind to start over. Thirdly, if Brother Hopkins comes over he's not just going to see the dining room, he's also going to go look at all of the other walls and--being the perfectionist that he is--will find lots of other, lesser flaws that he will also want to fix. Flaws that I can only find if I'm searching diligently for them--the kind that nobody will ever notice in a thousand years and I am perfectly content to live with. But he'll want to fix him and that means, again, back to square one. I'm not going back! (I say that as if I actually have any authoritative power to make that decision. HA!) In my opinion, Brother Hopkins isn't even allowed at our house until everything is finished and we're moved in and have things hanging all over the walls, perfect and imperfect. Again, Bessemer people--DON'T BLAB! ;-) Ha!!!
This morning I painted just part of a wall in there, wanting to see how the paint would cover the putty marks. Not very well, so after it dried I went over one spot again to see if that would do the trick. Almost, but not quite. So tonight (after our day of decision making rather than working) I put on yet another coat to see if THAT will cover the marks completely. I'll let it dry overnight then see what it looks like in the morning. If it's good, then I'll know that I need to put two more full coats of red over what's already there. (I already touched up the hundreds of putty marks with red, so they've got one coat on them to start with.) If it DOESN'T look good in the morning then it means I have to start over completely from scratch as if I'd never painted anything in that room: prime it top to bottom, then put two coats of paint on. So here we are riding the same old train--doing and undoing and redoing. It's our favorite ride. :-)
We did some deep thinking and serious math for a while this morning, then went to Home Depot and Lowes on a mission. We had been deciding on light fixtures for the kitchen, dining room, foyer and half bath, as well as adding up how much bead board we'll need for the back splash in the kitchen and how much wood and which cuts we would need for the counter tops--along with creating our plan for installing them. At the end of the day we came home with no lights, but a sink and a medicine cabinet! Ha! ALL of the lights we wanted were sold out, so that will have to wait for another day. --Still, we did finalize a lot of decisions and now have a plan. It feels good to know what you need to buy instead of still wondering. We made some decisions concerning the faucet and sconces for the half bath (mainly the decision was, "Oh, whatever you want to get, James--I'll be happy with either!") and we were able to buy the bead board for the back splash and the wood for the counter tops. Right now all of the pieces are laid out on top of the existing counter tops in the places where they will be installed--and I already love it!!! They're still in the plastic and unstained and uncut and unroutered, but just seeing kind-of-sort-of what it's going to look like makes me so happy! It's going to be great. :-)
What other news is there around here? Joe took way too long to do school today. Sam, on the other hand, jumped right into his school and had it all finished up without asking for help a sing time! That's a first. I checked all of his work and he did excellent. He did that this morning because James had told him last night that he really needed him to be in a good working mood today so he could get all of the tools gathered and organized for us. He didn't disappoint. He got up, did school, and got straight to work on the tools. We can finally find things again! Wa-hoo. :-)
That was the good part of the day for the kids. It went downhill from there! HA! We've been having some little attitude issues here lately; some rolling of the eyes or talking back (not in an offensive way, but talking back nonetheless--questioning commands or just having something to say about it--frequently) as well as having to be told multiple times to do something instead of just doing it the first time. It all sort of came to a head tonight and we worked through a whole lot of things. We ended up sitting down together and trying to work through the reasons WHY we've been having these problems and what we can do about it. We talked about each of our failures and some of the things we all could work on. We were having a good, deep, heartfelt discussion and started asking the kids some questions like, "What changes could we make that would help our family or make things better around here?" Joe answered without hesitation: A REFRIGERATOR. Ha! So much for our deep and heartfelt talk! Well, at least the deep part--his input was heartfelt, I'm sure! ;-) We told him we'd do our very best to remedy that one in the near future. ;-)
Too bad Katie missed the big family powwow. We'll have more in the future, I'm sure. :-) I heard she just completed a dress for her doll, Esther. She feels all grown up and accomplished to have sewn a whole dress! It makes me very proud. She'll be able to sew better than me by the time she's 13. Or maybe 11--that's how old she is right now! HA!
That's all the news from around here. I'll try to start taking pictures of things around here to spice up my next posts. :-)
Yesterday didn't score very highly on the accomplishment chart either, though I didn't know it at the time. I did sort of run from one project to the next and then on to another, so it's hard to feel like you really accomplish anything. I know I painted the dining room with the first coat of red paint--after having primed it the day before. I also started staining the bead board for the bottom half of the wall--with a stain other than Special Walnut! I don't think I've ever stained anything with another finish before. It's the stain that Grandmother and Granddad used on all of their wood and it's what I've used on all of my wood since working with them. I can't ever smell it or work with it without thinking of them. I always smile and sometimes cry. Anyway, we are using Special Walnut in several places but for the bead board I wanted something really light and golden looking instead of dark and rich. I can't ever remember the name of the stain, but it rhymes with dip stick of nitwit--one of the two. No, really--that's all I ever remember about it. Anyway, I got started staining the bead board nitwit :-) but there's still a ton of it to be done. I think I stained two out of ten or eleven packs! I can't remember what else I did--except laundry! I did some laundry just because I could. Oh, happy day!
The part I DO remember about yesterday is what James did to my freshly painted red walls in the dining room. This is the room that used to be covered top to bottom with glass mirror squares. We ripped them down (Sam did, actually) and then Brother Hopkins came and fixed the drywall for us. He told us over and over again to be sure and call him after we put on the first coat of paint so he can come and look things over and fix whatever got missed. You just can't see the flaws until you put paint on it. (Who rigged up that law?!) Well, the red paint did show the flaws--enough of them that James couldn't stand it. I was perfectly willing to live with them and be happy (you can always hang a picture over the really bad spots--ha!) knowing that even imperfect, things are soooooo much better than they were before! I insisted that James NOT call Brother Hopkins for multiple reasons. First of all, he has done sooooo much for us already and I wouldn't think of asking for more. He would be upset if he knew I said that so Bessemer people, DON'T BLAB! ;-) Secondly, I can't bear the thought of going back to step one: sheetrock. I am so ready to proceed and am in no state of mind to start over. Thirdly, if Brother Hopkins comes over he's not just going to see the dining room, he's also going to go look at all of the other walls and--being the perfectionist that he is--will find lots of other, lesser flaws that he will also want to fix. Flaws that I can only find if I'm searching diligently for them--the kind that nobody will ever notice in a thousand years and I am perfectly content to live with. But he'll want to fix him and that means, again, back to square one. I'm not going back! (I say that as if I actually have any authoritative power to make that decision. HA!) In my opinion, Brother Hopkins isn't even allowed at our house until everything is finished and we're moved in and have things hanging all over the walls, perfect and imperfect. Again, Bessemer people--DON'T BLAB! ;-) Ha!!!
This morning I painted just part of a wall in there, wanting to see how the paint would cover the putty marks. Not very well, so after it dried I went over one spot again to see if that would do the trick. Almost, but not quite. So tonight (after our day of decision making rather than working) I put on yet another coat to see if THAT will cover the marks completely. I'll let it dry overnight then see what it looks like in the morning. If it's good, then I'll know that I need to put two more full coats of red over what's already there. (I already touched up the hundreds of putty marks with red, so they've got one coat on them to start with.) If it DOESN'T look good in the morning then it means I have to start over completely from scratch as if I'd never painted anything in that room: prime it top to bottom, then put two coats of paint on. So here we are riding the same old train--doing and undoing and redoing. It's our favorite ride. :-)
We did some deep thinking and serious math for a while this morning, then went to Home Depot and Lowes on a mission. We had been deciding on light fixtures for the kitchen, dining room, foyer and half bath, as well as adding up how much bead board we'll need for the back splash in the kitchen and how much wood and which cuts we would need for the counter tops--along with creating our plan for installing them. At the end of the day we came home with no lights, but a sink and a medicine cabinet! Ha! ALL of the lights we wanted were sold out, so that will have to wait for another day. --Still, we did finalize a lot of decisions and now have a plan. It feels good to know what you need to buy instead of still wondering. We made some decisions concerning the faucet and sconces for the half bath (mainly the decision was, "Oh, whatever you want to get, James--I'll be happy with either!") and we were able to buy the bead board for the back splash and the wood for the counter tops. Right now all of the pieces are laid out on top of the existing counter tops in the places where they will be installed--and I already love it!!! They're still in the plastic and unstained and uncut and unroutered, but just seeing kind-of-sort-of what it's going to look like makes me so happy! It's going to be great. :-)
What other news is there around here? Joe took way too long to do school today. Sam, on the other hand, jumped right into his school and had it all finished up without asking for help a sing time! That's a first. I checked all of his work and he did excellent. He did that this morning because James had told him last night that he really needed him to be in a good working mood today so he could get all of the tools gathered and organized for us. He didn't disappoint. He got up, did school, and got straight to work on the tools. We can finally find things again! Wa-hoo. :-)
That was the good part of the day for the kids. It went downhill from there! HA! We've been having some little attitude issues here lately; some rolling of the eyes or talking back (not in an offensive way, but talking back nonetheless--questioning commands or just having something to say about it--frequently) as well as having to be told multiple times to do something instead of just doing it the first time. It all sort of came to a head tonight and we worked through a whole lot of things. We ended up sitting down together and trying to work through the reasons WHY we've been having these problems and what we can do about it. We talked about each of our failures and some of the things we all could work on. We were having a good, deep, heartfelt discussion and started asking the kids some questions like, "What changes could we make that would help our family or make things better around here?" Joe answered without hesitation: A REFRIGERATOR. Ha! So much for our deep and heartfelt talk! Well, at least the deep part--his input was heartfelt, I'm sure! ;-) We told him we'd do our very best to remedy that one in the near future. ;-)
Too bad Katie missed the big family powwow. We'll have more in the future, I'm sure. :-) I heard she just completed a dress for her doll, Esther. She feels all grown up and accomplished to have sewn a whole dress! It makes me very proud. She'll be able to sew better than me by the time she's 13. Or maybe 11--that's how old she is right now! HA!
That's all the news from around here. I'll try to start taking pictures of things around here to spice up my next posts. :-)
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Loving the Laundry Room!
To borrow (and manipulate) a favorite movie line of mine:
"Wherever we go, whatever we do... I'm taking this laundry room with me." :-)
I LOVE IT.
I'm getting to use it tonight (for it's intended use, for a change) and it's just soooooo nice. I LOVE having a separate room to do laundry in instead of just a hallway. I love it that it has a door and you can close off the noise. I love it that I have cute red cabinets in which to store all manner of things. I love that I can pull the detergent out a titch and push the button and ~shlurp~ it drops right into the washer with no mess and no fuss. I love it that I have a utility sink (!!!) and it's all nice and clean with fresh shelf paper in the cabinet below. I love it that I have a little bar to hang clothes on and a great big shelf around the corner to use for a folding table. I love it that I have carpet in there instead of a hard floor of some kind--carpet always feels so much cleaner to me. I love it that the carpet is just in squares so if we ever have a leak and have to replace some of it, we can just pull up a square or two and use some of the extras we bought. I love it that I HAVE carpet squares, but I can't SEE the squares--it just looks like regular carpet. Shall I go on???
I washed dishes in my utility sink tonight. :-)
I ran three loads of laundry tonight. :-)
And it didn't flood my kitchen or anything!!! :-)
Yes, life is grand and I am LOVING my new utility room. One more thing that I love...
I LOVE IT than I can have clean clothes whenever I need them!!! For the past two or three months we've been hauling suitcases of clean clothes and bags or baskets of dirty clothes back and forth from one house to the other, sometimes two or three times a week. I did laundry when I was at the house with a washer, and I waited when I was at the other house. But now! Oh, now I can do laundry any ole' day I please!!! I can't remember ever really looking forward to doing laundry but this is just oh-so-exciting!!! And it's sooooo nice because the room is so bright and happy and cute and FRESH and CLEAN! What a happy place to be. :-) I am soooooo thankful--and have been sure to thank God a dozen times today (is that all?) for the best laundry room in the whole wide world. And it's FINISHED. That's a rare jewel of a phrase around here and it is ever so sweet to be able to say it.
That's the big news around here. You might have guessed.
Yesterday didn't go according to schedule (do we EVER have days that go according to schedule?) but it turned out to be a nice day anyway. I helped the kids with school for a while, then we had some errands to run with James. Got home just in time for the plumbers to show up and surmise our problem (though they didn't have time to fix it), then worked on school stuff with the kids for a while longer before heading out on more errands. First stop: the Foundry. I don't know how he managed it, but Sam has strategically outgrown all of his clothes immediately after I got them sorted out and knew what (used to) fit him. I had those boys try on every stitch of clothing they own just a few weeks ago when we were packing up from the Powells' house and I got rid of everything that was too small. But suddenly all of his pant legs and sleeves are too short! Crazy. We did find several pairs of pants for Joe and Sam, so that's good.
The trip to the Foundry also had a very negative affect on me. I tried on several super cute, super nice, super cheap shirts and jackets... only the grimace and quickly re-hang them. They should have fit. A year ago they would have fit. I noticed a week or two ago that my favorite skirt is no longer loose and in need of adjusting all the time. That's the good news. The bad news... is obvious. Something has got to be done. I don't typically worry too much about weight, but this is getting gross. Ha! Actually, I'm not the least bit worried about weight. I have no idea what I weigh and I couldn't care less. I just want to feel good, have energy... and not look totally gross in my clothes. I determined years ago that I would not be one of those old ladies whose clothes showcases her rolls of flab. Hahahahaha! Is this getting too graphic? I'm sorry. Let's just say it's time to get things under control before they are completely out of control. ;-)
Don't know where all of that came from. Again, my apologies!
After we left the Foundry we stopped next door at the giant building that says AUCTION across the front. The parking lot has always been vacant when we've been there, so we didn't think it was actually in use. We have now discovered that they have an auction there every Tuesday night. You can go in on Mondays and see what's there to be bid on, place a silent bid if you want to, or come back for the actual auction the next night. James thinks he has died and gone to heaven. Did I mention this place is less than 3 miles from our house? I will never see my husband again on a Tuesday night for as long as we live here. ;-) I'm happy for him. He LOVES stuff like that. He and his dad love to go to auctions together and Sam already has the bug, too. The two of them will have a blast. Even though it's a bad, bad thing. Can you imagine how much junk he's going to start hauling home now?! And the worst part of all... I can't even say "We don't have ROOM for that!!!" anymore! This house is just way, way too big. Ha!
We washed the car yesterday, too, then vacuumed it out--something that has needed done for a couple of months now. Gross. It feels sooooo much better. Then we went to Wal-Mart to get supplies for school projects for the kids, then to the church for dinner. Joe had been jealous when Michael told him at church on Sunday that they were going home for lunch because his Gran had made a pot roast. Joe is DYING for home cooked food (or even "home slapped food" here lately--meaning you slap together a PB&J or something) and is soooooo tired of eating out. Aren't we all! Anyway, Michael felt bad for him and brought a big plate full of roast and potatoes and carrots and peas and mac-n-cheese and I don't know what all and gave it to Joe at church that night. Since we don't have a fridge yet we just kept it in the fridge at the church, then last night James and I took sandwiches to the church for dinner and let the boys polish off the "home cooked" meal. They happily scarfed down every bite, then we washed the plate up and delivered it back to the Ridlespurges. It was nice to stop by and see them for a little while--seems like it's been ages since we've done that!
Today the plumbers showed up and replaced the wicked pipe whose fault it was that my washer flooded my kitchen (let's pretend that sentence makes sense), so THAT was exciting--though pricey. Plumbers are always pricey. You can feel the OUCH just picking up the phone to call and talk to 'em, you know? But in the end we are now up and running and able to do laundry. And have I mentioned that I'm a little excited about that?! ;-)
The accomplishments of the day around here were that I got the dining room and the foyer all primed. I don't know how, but it already looks so much better! I'm feeling really encouraged about the possibility of getting some big things done around here in the next two weeks and perhaps (dare I say it aloud?) getting some flooring put in! ~gasp!~ Wouldn't that be grand??? The term "two weeks" seems so attainable and makes me feel encouraged. Although I just realized that I've been saying "two weeks" for several days now... Do I mean two weeks from today or two weeks from when I first started using the term? Ha! Either way, if it serves to motivate me and make me feel encouraged and primed to keep working with drive I'm going to keep saying it--and trying to believe it. :-) Two weeks... :-)
In other news, the boys miss Katie but they won't admit it for at least another day or two. At least that's my opinion. :-) It sure is a lot quieter around here without her! HA! There is a marked difference when she's not here and I'll be glad to have her home, but I'm so glad she's getting to spend time with my folks. And James is so glad that my Mom is sewing lots of new skirts and dresses for her! That girl really needed some and you just can't find them anywhere. What a blessing to have a Mom so talented and willing to help out! I'm anxious to see all of the new stuff.
That's about it. I'm going to try to get to bed at a decent hour tonight so I can get a fresh start in the morning. Lots to get done this week--Mom's coming next week! :-)
"Wherever we go, whatever we do... I'm taking this laundry room with me." :-)
I LOVE IT.
I'm getting to use it tonight (for it's intended use, for a change) and it's just soooooo nice. I LOVE having a separate room to do laundry in instead of just a hallway. I love it that it has a door and you can close off the noise. I love it that I have cute red cabinets in which to store all manner of things. I love that I can pull the detergent out a titch and push the button and ~shlurp~ it drops right into the washer with no mess and no fuss. I love it that I have a utility sink (!!!) and it's all nice and clean with fresh shelf paper in the cabinet below. I love it that I have a little bar to hang clothes on and a great big shelf around the corner to use for a folding table. I love it that I have carpet in there instead of a hard floor of some kind--carpet always feels so much cleaner to me. I love it that the carpet is just in squares so if we ever have a leak and have to replace some of it, we can just pull up a square or two and use some of the extras we bought. I love it that I HAVE carpet squares, but I can't SEE the squares--it just looks like regular carpet. Shall I go on???
I washed dishes in my utility sink tonight. :-)
I ran three loads of laundry tonight. :-)
And it didn't flood my kitchen or anything!!! :-)
Yes, life is grand and I am LOVING my new utility room. One more thing that I love...
I LOVE IT than I can have clean clothes whenever I need them!!! For the past two or three months we've been hauling suitcases of clean clothes and bags or baskets of dirty clothes back and forth from one house to the other, sometimes two or three times a week. I did laundry when I was at the house with a washer, and I waited when I was at the other house. But now! Oh, now I can do laundry any ole' day I please!!! I can't remember ever really looking forward to doing laundry but this is just oh-so-exciting!!! And it's sooooo nice because the room is so bright and happy and cute and FRESH and CLEAN! What a happy place to be. :-) I am soooooo thankful--and have been sure to thank God a dozen times today (is that all?) for the best laundry room in the whole wide world. And it's FINISHED. That's a rare jewel of a phrase around here and it is ever so sweet to be able to say it.
That's the big news around here. You might have guessed.
Yesterday didn't go according to schedule (do we EVER have days that go according to schedule?) but it turned out to be a nice day anyway. I helped the kids with school for a while, then we had some errands to run with James. Got home just in time for the plumbers to show up and surmise our problem (though they didn't have time to fix it), then worked on school stuff with the kids for a while longer before heading out on more errands. First stop: the Foundry. I don't know how he managed it, but Sam has strategically outgrown all of his clothes immediately after I got them sorted out and knew what (used to) fit him. I had those boys try on every stitch of clothing they own just a few weeks ago when we were packing up from the Powells' house and I got rid of everything that was too small. But suddenly all of his pant legs and sleeves are too short! Crazy. We did find several pairs of pants for Joe and Sam, so that's good.
The trip to the Foundry also had a very negative affect on me. I tried on several super cute, super nice, super cheap shirts and jackets... only the grimace and quickly re-hang them. They should have fit. A year ago they would have fit. I noticed a week or two ago that my favorite skirt is no longer loose and in need of adjusting all the time. That's the good news. The bad news... is obvious. Something has got to be done. I don't typically worry too much about weight, but this is getting gross. Ha! Actually, I'm not the least bit worried about weight. I have no idea what I weigh and I couldn't care less. I just want to feel good, have energy... and not look totally gross in my clothes. I determined years ago that I would not be one of those old ladies whose clothes showcases her rolls of flab. Hahahahaha! Is this getting too graphic? I'm sorry. Let's just say it's time to get things under control before they are completely out of control. ;-)
Don't know where all of that came from. Again, my apologies!
After we left the Foundry we stopped next door at the giant building that says AUCTION across the front. The parking lot has always been vacant when we've been there, so we didn't think it was actually in use. We have now discovered that they have an auction there every Tuesday night. You can go in on Mondays and see what's there to be bid on, place a silent bid if you want to, or come back for the actual auction the next night. James thinks he has died and gone to heaven. Did I mention this place is less than 3 miles from our house? I will never see my husband again on a Tuesday night for as long as we live here. ;-) I'm happy for him. He LOVES stuff like that. He and his dad love to go to auctions together and Sam already has the bug, too. The two of them will have a blast. Even though it's a bad, bad thing. Can you imagine how much junk he's going to start hauling home now?! And the worst part of all... I can't even say "We don't have ROOM for that!!!" anymore! This house is just way, way too big. Ha!
We washed the car yesterday, too, then vacuumed it out--something that has needed done for a couple of months now. Gross. It feels sooooo much better. Then we went to Wal-Mart to get supplies for school projects for the kids, then to the church for dinner. Joe had been jealous when Michael told him at church on Sunday that they were going home for lunch because his Gran had made a pot roast. Joe is DYING for home cooked food (or even "home slapped food" here lately--meaning you slap together a PB&J or something) and is soooooo tired of eating out. Aren't we all! Anyway, Michael felt bad for him and brought a big plate full of roast and potatoes and carrots and peas and mac-n-cheese and I don't know what all and gave it to Joe at church that night. Since we don't have a fridge yet we just kept it in the fridge at the church, then last night James and I took sandwiches to the church for dinner and let the boys polish off the "home cooked" meal. They happily scarfed down every bite, then we washed the plate up and delivered it back to the Ridlespurges. It was nice to stop by and see them for a little while--seems like it's been ages since we've done that!
Today the plumbers showed up and replaced the wicked pipe whose fault it was that my washer flooded my kitchen (let's pretend that sentence makes sense), so THAT was exciting--though pricey. Plumbers are always pricey. You can feel the OUCH just picking up the phone to call and talk to 'em, you know? But in the end we are now up and running and able to do laundry. And have I mentioned that I'm a little excited about that?! ;-)
The accomplishments of the day around here were that I got the dining room and the foyer all primed. I don't know how, but it already looks so much better! I'm feeling really encouraged about the possibility of getting some big things done around here in the next two weeks and perhaps (dare I say it aloud?) getting some flooring put in! ~gasp!~ Wouldn't that be grand??? The term "two weeks" seems so attainable and makes me feel encouraged. Although I just realized that I've been saying "two weeks" for several days now... Do I mean two weeks from today or two weeks from when I first started using the term? Ha! Either way, if it serves to motivate me and make me feel encouraged and primed to keep working with drive I'm going to keep saying it--and trying to believe it. :-) Two weeks... :-)
In other news, the boys miss Katie but they won't admit it for at least another day or two. At least that's my opinion. :-) It sure is a lot quieter around here without her! HA! There is a marked difference when she's not here and I'll be glad to have her home, but I'm so glad she's getting to spend time with my folks. And James is so glad that my Mom is sewing lots of new skirts and dresses for her! That girl really needed some and you just can't find them anywhere. What a blessing to have a Mom so talented and willing to help out! I'm anxious to see all of the new stuff.
That's about it. I'm going to try to get to bed at a decent hour tonight so I can get a fresh start in the morning. Lots to get done this week--Mom's coming next week! :-)
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Visiting Aunt Sue & the Folks
After our new washer arrived and flooded our kitchen on Wednesday (ha!) we got all packed up for a mini-trip to Cleveland. Aunt Sue had flown in to visit Mom & Dad the night before and we didn't want to miss out on seeing her. So after church that night we took off and drove the three hours up there, arriving sometime after 1:00am.
We then spent Thursday and Friday just hanging out. It was soooooo nice. It was the most enjoyably relaxing two days I've had in a long, long, long time. Since Katie & Joe's birthday hadn't exactly panned out the way we had hoped the week before (including not a single present to unwrap) Mom said we could have a little party for them up there. It was GREAT. James and I went to the store to pick up a little something for each of them that morning and found some terrific deals on clearance.
But before I post pictures of the post-birthday birthday party, I'll put some up from their real birthday a couple of weeks ago.
Both kids had requested a trip to the Hoover Library. They would move in there permanently if they could. Here is Katie diving into her stack of books.
The adults didn't seem quite as excited about this particular stop. Ha!
Joe wanted to stop by Guitar Center to check out the expensive guitar room. Jacob gave him a few pointers while they were there--and then copied an instructional DVD for him that Joe has LOVED watching and says he's learning lots from.
Katie wanted to stop by Christmas Tree Shops. Philip found this great birthday hat. We didn't want to actually buy it, but thought it was worth a picture.
Then it was off to Sam's Club to buy a birthday cake. How is it that teenagers do things that I don't allow my kids to do... but it somehow seems acceptable?! ;-)
The lighting of the candles...
Katie blowing out her eleven...
And Joe finishing off his ten... minus one, it looks like.
And the whole crowd.
Okay, back to our Cleveland trip this past weekend.
After our shopping trip that morning James and I got home at about noon and Mom had the table all ready--Frito pie for lunch and party stuff in place: balloons (thanks to Aunt Sue), party hats, those little blow thingies, and adorable and delicious strawberry cupcakes. We enjoyed a nice lunch together, then the kids lit the candles, one on each cupcake, and we sang to them.
Then somebody started making use of the party blowers. Dad didn't think they were very fun so he went for the big ammo. He's ALWAYS had a thing for long cardboard tubes.
Since Mom is the one who bought the crazy little blowers we told the kids they should all go blow them at her. :-)
And Sue... being Aunt Sue. :-)
Uh-oh. Looks like I've got my pictures out of order. Candle lighting here.
Sam getting into the spirit of things.
And then it was present time. Joe got a great set of disk shooters with wa-a-a-a-a-ay too many disks. I look forward to finding them all over my house along with all of the foam darts that are already there.
Katie's gift from Aunt Sue was a cute little coin purse and a journal.
From Grandma & Granddad, Joe got a BIG container of BBs and a cool slingshot that doubles as a whistle of some kind. He was pretty excited about it.
Katie got a bag full of random things from us. This is her Phase 10 dice game in a can. Very cute and way fun.
She received other miscellaneous items that I won't elaborate on, but this was her response. :-)
And an adorable blouse and jumper that Grandma Vicki had made--I failed to get a picture of the jumper, but I'm sure there will be pictures of it later on. I'm sure she'll be wearing it lots!
Aunt Sue took on the job of removing Joe's toys from the box. Never an easy thing these days. And Aunt Sue with a knife is pretty scary. ;-)
After the party we just played. Had a nice, relaxing day full of nothing but fun, enjoyable time together. I loved every minute of it. I just kept thinking, "Wow, this is sooooo nice. This is the nicest day I can remember in a long, long time!"
Dad recently bought a set of épées at an antique store. You know, the thin, pointy swords used for fencing. Like Zorro or the Three Musketeers. That's a fantastic toy for grandchildren to have, don't you think? Especially since there were no masks or protective gear of any kind. Ha! They really are cool and the kids loved them. Here's Dad teaching Sam a few things...
Joe and Katie's turn.
And I couldn't resist putting this clip up. :-)
Then it was time to shoot some guns from the back deck. I love shooting guns. Dad picked up a neat little pistol sometime recently that was lots of fun to shoot, then we moved to the .22 rifle.
James' turn.
And Sam...
Even Mom got in on the action.
Aunt Sue, hilarious as always. She makes everything way more fun than it otherwise would be! Ha!
After a while Dad pulled out an old 30/30 that he says hasn't been shot in 30 years--since the first year he hunted elk in Colorado. He decided to let Aunt Sue give it a try first, but didn't tell her about the change of caliber--she thought she was still working with a .22--HA!
I shot the 30/30, too--my first time with anything bigger than a .22 (but I was prepared a little better than Aunt Sue was--ha!) and it was very fun. It always gives you a little surge of that-is-so-cool when you blast a can and it jumps into the air, but when you're using a bigger gun and it blows the can to smithereens it just takes the thrill to a whole new level. SO COOL. :-)
Dad shot this tree and told the boys they could go dig the bullet out, but they were unable to do it alone. James worked on it for a little while, to no avail.
Then Dad came out with the big equipment (ha!), but even with the power tools he was unable to get down deep enough to dislodge the slug.
Charlie had a rather exciting day that day. He had only ever spent time around Brady and other BIG dogs, and if he was ever around a little dog he would totally spazz out like he didn't realize it was a DOG just like him. (I think he thinks he's one of the big guys himself.) But Mom & Dad's neighbors got a Yorkie sometime recently and she showed up in the yard while the kids were fencing. Charlie freaked out, as usual, but finally got over it and decided Bells wasn't so bad after all. Within ten minutes he was totally in love. Ha! He followed her around all afternoon and could think of nothing else. She seemed to enjoy all of the attention and it wasn't very long before she decided she was part of the family, even joining us in the house and finding a spot of her own on the couch. (The invitation to come in came from my Dad, NOT my Mom--obviously! HA!) She was a cute little girl and Charlie was devastated (and drove us crazy the rest of the night) when we had one of the kids take her home. I'm not sure he'll ever be the same again. Ha!
Mom fixed a great ham dinner that night, then we set up a projector and looked at tons of pictures and video clips from their trip to Israel, Turkey, and India. We all really enjoyed it (even Joe talked about how cool it was) and I was moved to tears several times--especially during the clip of the service they had with Brother Jones and his daughter in Turkey. It was the first service he's been in for 7 years, and the first service ever for his daughter. To think of having even just a few people in your home, singing When the Church of God Arises and having Sunday School together and hearing a message live for the first time in all those years... I can't imagine the feeling of isolation they must have over there and how much it must have meant to have somebody there with them. Anyway, I also really enjoyed the clip of Dad having a mini-service on Mt. Hattin where the CPMA marker stands in honor of the location where Jesus organized the Church. And the clips of the elephan "blessing" Mom and Dad--that was pretty great, too. Ha!
Friday was even more relaxing than Thursday had been. We did pretty much nothing the whole day, just played lots of games. Aunt Sue was dumb enough to get roped into a game of Monopoly with the kids. I only showed up long enough to take a picture, then I got gone as quickly as possible. I know how these games go!
I really can't remember much else about that day. I started to feel sick that afternoon and it continued to intensify throughout the day--runny nose, stuffiness, headache, all that stuff. But we played games and more games--Phase 10 dice, Rack-o and more I Buy. We ended up watching Daniel Boone together than evening--a pretty good one. It's always best when Jimmy Dean is on. :-)
It was bedtime after that, but the kids begged for more time because it was their last night with Aunt Sue, so we all went to the dining room and played the craziest game of Pictionary I have EVER played! Hahahahaha! We laughed sooooo hard. It was the first time the kids had played and they did great, but mostly we all just cracked up at Aunt Sue. She is a wild woman and keeps us all in stitches. Sam got pretty wound up, too, so between Aunt Sue doing the wave and Sam dancing on his chair it was a most memorable evening. I only wish I had some pictures or video clips from THAT!
Aunt Sue left early the next morning. I woke up feeling horrible and only worked at a snail's pace collecting our belongings and getting packed up. Mom cooked a fantastic late breakfast for us: eggs, hashbrowns, sausage, bisquits and gravy. I think it was somewhere around noon before we got loaded up and headed for home--one child short. Sort of on a whim Mom mentioned that she could keep Katie there this coming week and do some sewing for her and teach her some sewing things, too. We typically would have said no because we didn't have Kate's school stuff with us and didn't want her to fall behind... but she is desperately in need of some skirts and we can't find any anywhere! So James declared it "home ec" week for Katie and said she was to learn to cook and bake and sew and all manner of domestic schooling was to take place every day. I'm sure she's having a ball already. Joe was jealous and wanted to stay, too. Sam was anything but jealous and only wished that Joe would've been allowed to stay "at Alcatraz" with Katie so he could be an only child and be with just James and me for a whole week. Ha! He would have been so lonely and bored by the end of the week, he just doesn't know it. ;-)
Anyway, from the time we pulled out of the driveway at Mom's house I slept. We stopped at Southeastern Salvage in Chattanooga and bought a faucet for the kitchen (James found a nice cast iron sink on sale 50% off last week--now we just need a countertop so we can get it installed!), then I was asleep again. We stopped for lunch in Gadsden, then I drove the rest of the way home because James was feeling so tired. We arrived at 4:00 or so. I didn't unload a thing. I walked in the door, set my purse down, and crawled straight into bed. A sore throat had kicked in by then among other things and I just felt so, so exhausted. I slept until 6:00, then got up to work on Sunday School stuff for a little while. I changed into some warm pj's, then even dug out my Granddad's thick, heavy robe--I was just sooooo cold. Actually, it was a case of the sweaty chills. You know, where you feel hot and miserable under all of the covers and clothing, but if you take just one layer off you find yourself shivering and needing to put it back on. I was back in bed by 9:00 and slept for ten hours! But, praise the Lord, I woke up feeling much, much better. I had really prayed that the Lord would touch and help me--I wanted to be in church and I knew I had a Sunday School class counting on me--and He did. I'm not 100% yet, but a thousand times better. Thank God! He is so good to hear and answer our prayers.
James preached this morning and--despite our conversation this afternoon (ha!)--he did a great job. He preached on the Word of God not changing--Jesus still means what He said the first time, regardless of who or how many people want to change it or "say it wrong" like the Ephraimites. It was very good.
We decided to try Ruby Tuesdays with the Washburns for lunch. It was pricier than what we like to pay... but it was sooooo good! And they had a terrific little salad bar. It tasted like something different and that was good. And, as always, we had a great time fellwshipping with them. They are so great to be around. We hope they enjoy being with us as much as we enjoy being with them and that they don't have any ulterior motives or anything. Ha! ;-)
After all of the sleeping I did yesterday afternoon and last night, I didn't even get desperate for a nap today (!) so I spent the rest of the afternoon uploading all of the pictures for this blog (it takes a while, you know!) while the boys watched Savage Sam--the sequel to Old Yeller. It's a great show and doesn't make you cry at the end. Sam told me that he likes it because it gives him "that Texas feeling." Strangely enough, I knew exactly what he meant--and I feel the same way! :-)
Tonight was Lesson 4 of The Body of Christ course. It was very good and I was much more alert and coherent than last time. Ha! The Sunday night McAlister's crowd was pretty small tonight. Sister Krystal was home sick so the Coxes didn't come and the Ridlespurges have decided to save some of that eating out money for other purposes (something we intend to do as soon as I have a kitchen!), so that left us to enjoy the Washburns company for the second time today. :-) I just love fellowshipping with Church folks. It's the best.
And that brings us to the end of a wonderful, relaxing, blessed weekend. Even with the sickness thrown into the mix, it was just a fantastic weekend and I'm soooo thankful that it worked out for us to spend some time with Aunt Sue and Mom and Dad. And now??? BACK TO WORK! :-)
We then spent Thursday and Friday just hanging out. It was soooooo nice. It was the most enjoyably relaxing two days I've had in a long, long, long time. Since Katie & Joe's birthday hadn't exactly panned out the way we had hoped the week before (including not a single present to unwrap) Mom said we could have a little party for them up there. It was GREAT. James and I went to the store to pick up a little something for each of them that morning and found some terrific deals on clearance.
But before I post pictures of the post-birthday birthday party, I'll put some up from their real birthday a couple of weeks ago.
Both kids had requested a trip to the Hoover Library. They would move in there permanently if they could. Here is Katie diving into her stack of books.
The adults didn't seem quite as excited about this particular stop. Ha!
Joe wanted to stop by Guitar Center to check out the expensive guitar room. Jacob gave him a few pointers while they were there--and then copied an instructional DVD for him that Joe has LOVED watching and says he's learning lots from.
Katie wanted to stop by Christmas Tree Shops. Philip found this great birthday hat. We didn't want to actually buy it, but thought it was worth a picture.
Then it was off to Sam's Club to buy a birthday cake. How is it that teenagers do things that I don't allow my kids to do... but it somehow seems acceptable?! ;-)
The lighting of the candles...
Katie blowing out her eleven...
And Joe finishing off his ten... minus one, it looks like.
And the whole crowd.
Okay, back to our Cleveland trip this past weekend.
After our shopping trip that morning James and I got home at about noon and Mom had the table all ready--Frito pie for lunch and party stuff in place: balloons (thanks to Aunt Sue), party hats, those little blow thingies, and adorable and delicious strawberry cupcakes. We enjoyed a nice lunch together, then the kids lit the candles, one on each cupcake, and we sang to them.
Then somebody started making use of the party blowers. Dad didn't think they were very fun so he went for the big ammo. He's ALWAYS had a thing for long cardboard tubes.
Since Mom is the one who bought the crazy little blowers we told the kids they should all go blow them at her. :-)
And Sue... being Aunt Sue. :-)
Uh-oh. Looks like I've got my pictures out of order. Candle lighting here.
Sam getting into the spirit of things.
And then it was present time. Joe got a great set of disk shooters with wa-a-a-a-a-ay too many disks. I look forward to finding them all over my house along with all of the foam darts that are already there.
Katie's gift from Aunt Sue was a cute little coin purse and a journal.
From Grandma & Granddad, Joe got a BIG container of BBs and a cool slingshot that doubles as a whistle of some kind. He was pretty excited about it.
Katie got a bag full of random things from us. This is her Phase 10 dice game in a can. Very cute and way fun.
She received other miscellaneous items that I won't elaborate on, but this was her response. :-)
And an adorable blouse and jumper that Grandma Vicki had made--I failed to get a picture of the jumper, but I'm sure there will be pictures of it later on. I'm sure she'll be wearing it lots!
Aunt Sue took on the job of removing Joe's toys from the box. Never an easy thing these days. And Aunt Sue with a knife is pretty scary. ;-)
After the party we just played. Had a nice, relaxing day full of nothing but fun, enjoyable time together. I loved every minute of it. I just kept thinking, "Wow, this is sooooo nice. This is the nicest day I can remember in a long, long time!"
Dad recently bought a set of épées at an antique store. You know, the thin, pointy swords used for fencing. Like Zorro or the Three Musketeers. That's a fantastic toy for grandchildren to have, don't you think? Especially since there were no masks or protective gear of any kind. Ha! They really are cool and the kids loved them. Here's Dad teaching Sam a few things...
Joe and Katie's turn.
And I couldn't resist putting this clip up. :-)
Then it was time to shoot some guns from the back deck. I love shooting guns. Dad picked up a neat little pistol sometime recently that was lots of fun to shoot, then we moved to the .22 rifle.
James' turn.
And Sam...
Even Mom got in on the action.
Aunt Sue, hilarious as always. She makes everything way more fun than it otherwise would be! Ha!
After a while Dad pulled out an old 30/30 that he says hasn't been shot in 30 years--since the first year he hunted elk in Colorado. He decided to let Aunt Sue give it a try first, but didn't tell her about the change of caliber--she thought she was still working with a .22--HA!
I shot the 30/30, too--my first time with anything bigger than a .22 (but I was prepared a little better than Aunt Sue was--ha!) and it was very fun. It always gives you a little surge of that-is-so-cool when you blast a can and it jumps into the air, but when you're using a bigger gun and it blows the can to smithereens it just takes the thrill to a whole new level. SO COOL. :-)
Dad shot this tree and told the boys they could go dig the bullet out, but they were unable to do it alone. James worked on it for a little while, to no avail.
Then Dad came out with the big equipment (ha!), but even with the power tools he was unable to get down deep enough to dislodge the slug.
Charlie had a rather exciting day that day. He had only ever spent time around Brady and other BIG dogs, and if he was ever around a little dog he would totally spazz out like he didn't realize it was a DOG just like him. (I think he thinks he's one of the big guys himself.) But Mom & Dad's neighbors got a Yorkie sometime recently and she showed up in the yard while the kids were fencing. Charlie freaked out, as usual, but finally got over it and decided Bells wasn't so bad after all. Within ten minutes he was totally in love. Ha! He followed her around all afternoon and could think of nothing else. She seemed to enjoy all of the attention and it wasn't very long before she decided she was part of the family, even joining us in the house and finding a spot of her own on the couch. (The invitation to come in came from my Dad, NOT my Mom--obviously! HA!) She was a cute little girl and Charlie was devastated (and drove us crazy the rest of the night) when we had one of the kids take her home. I'm not sure he'll ever be the same again. Ha!
Mom fixed a great ham dinner that night, then we set up a projector and looked at tons of pictures and video clips from their trip to Israel, Turkey, and India. We all really enjoyed it (even Joe talked about how cool it was) and I was moved to tears several times--especially during the clip of the service they had with Brother Jones and his daughter in Turkey. It was the first service he's been in for 7 years, and the first service ever for his daughter. To think of having even just a few people in your home, singing When the Church of God Arises and having Sunday School together and hearing a message live for the first time in all those years... I can't imagine the feeling of isolation they must have over there and how much it must have meant to have somebody there with them. Anyway, I also really enjoyed the clip of Dad having a mini-service on Mt. Hattin where the CPMA marker stands in honor of the location where Jesus organized the Church. And the clips of the elephan "blessing" Mom and Dad--that was pretty great, too. Ha!
Friday was even more relaxing than Thursday had been. We did pretty much nothing the whole day, just played lots of games. Aunt Sue was dumb enough to get roped into a game of Monopoly with the kids. I only showed up long enough to take a picture, then I got gone as quickly as possible. I know how these games go!
I really can't remember much else about that day. I started to feel sick that afternoon and it continued to intensify throughout the day--runny nose, stuffiness, headache, all that stuff. But we played games and more games--Phase 10 dice, Rack-o and more I Buy. We ended up watching Daniel Boone together than evening--a pretty good one. It's always best when Jimmy Dean is on. :-)
It was bedtime after that, but the kids begged for more time because it was their last night with Aunt Sue, so we all went to the dining room and played the craziest game of Pictionary I have EVER played! Hahahahaha! We laughed sooooo hard. It was the first time the kids had played and they did great, but mostly we all just cracked up at Aunt Sue. She is a wild woman and keeps us all in stitches. Sam got pretty wound up, too, so between Aunt Sue doing the wave and Sam dancing on his chair it was a most memorable evening. I only wish I had some pictures or video clips from THAT!
Aunt Sue left early the next morning. I woke up feeling horrible and only worked at a snail's pace collecting our belongings and getting packed up. Mom cooked a fantastic late breakfast for us: eggs, hashbrowns, sausage, bisquits and gravy. I think it was somewhere around noon before we got loaded up and headed for home--one child short. Sort of on a whim Mom mentioned that she could keep Katie there this coming week and do some sewing for her and teach her some sewing things, too. We typically would have said no because we didn't have Kate's school stuff with us and didn't want her to fall behind... but she is desperately in need of some skirts and we can't find any anywhere! So James declared it "home ec" week for Katie and said she was to learn to cook and bake and sew and all manner of domestic schooling was to take place every day. I'm sure she's having a ball already. Joe was jealous and wanted to stay, too. Sam was anything but jealous and only wished that Joe would've been allowed to stay "at Alcatraz" with Katie so he could be an only child and be with just James and me for a whole week. Ha! He would have been so lonely and bored by the end of the week, he just doesn't know it. ;-)
Anyway, from the time we pulled out of the driveway at Mom's house I slept. We stopped at Southeastern Salvage in Chattanooga and bought a faucet for the kitchen (James found a nice cast iron sink on sale 50% off last week--now we just need a countertop so we can get it installed!), then I was asleep again. We stopped for lunch in Gadsden, then I drove the rest of the way home because James was feeling so tired. We arrived at 4:00 or so. I didn't unload a thing. I walked in the door, set my purse down, and crawled straight into bed. A sore throat had kicked in by then among other things and I just felt so, so exhausted. I slept until 6:00, then got up to work on Sunday School stuff for a little while. I changed into some warm pj's, then even dug out my Granddad's thick, heavy robe--I was just sooooo cold. Actually, it was a case of the sweaty chills. You know, where you feel hot and miserable under all of the covers and clothing, but if you take just one layer off you find yourself shivering and needing to put it back on. I was back in bed by 9:00 and slept for ten hours! But, praise the Lord, I woke up feeling much, much better. I had really prayed that the Lord would touch and help me--I wanted to be in church and I knew I had a Sunday School class counting on me--and He did. I'm not 100% yet, but a thousand times better. Thank God! He is so good to hear and answer our prayers.
James preached this morning and--despite our conversation this afternoon (ha!)--he did a great job. He preached on the Word of God not changing--Jesus still means what He said the first time, regardless of who or how many people want to change it or "say it wrong" like the Ephraimites. It was very good.
We decided to try Ruby Tuesdays with the Washburns for lunch. It was pricier than what we like to pay... but it was sooooo good! And they had a terrific little salad bar. It tasted like something different and that was good. And, as always, we had a great time fellwshipping with them. They are so great to be around. We hope they enjoy being with us as much as we enjoy being with them and that they don't have any ulterior motives or anything. Ha! ;-)
After all of the sleeping I did yesterday afternoon and last night, I didn't even get desperate for a nap today (!) so I spent the rest of the afternoon uploading all of the pictures for this blog (it takes a while, you know!) while the boys watched Savage Sam--the sequel to Old Yeller. It's a great show and doesn't make you cry at the end. Sam told me that he likes it because it gives him "that Texas feeling." Strangely enough, I knew exactly what he meant--and I feel the same way! :-)
Tonight was Lesson 4 of The Body of Christ course. It was very good and I was much more alert and coherent than last time. Ha! The Sunday night McAlister's crowd was pretty small tonight. Sister Krystal was home sick so the Coxes didn't come and the Ridlespurges have decided to save some of that eating out money for other purposes (something we intend to do as soon as I have a kitchen!), so that left us to enjoy the Washburns company for the second time today. :-) I just love fellowshipping with Church folks. It's the best.
And that brings us to the end of a wonderful, relaxing, blessed weekend. Even with the sickness thrown into the mix, it was just a fantastic weekend and I'm soooo thankful that it worked out for us to spend some time with Aunt Sue and Mom and Dad. And now??? BACK TO WORK! :-)
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Laundry Day!!!
I've never been so excited to do laundry before in my life! HA! Our new washer and dryer were delivered today, so now I can do laundry IN MY VERY OWN HOUSE!!!!!
WA-HOOOOO!!!!
WA-HOOOOO!!!!
Lookie! Lookie! Lookie!
And from the other angle so Mom can see that we did get a little clothes rod put up in there. Most of Katie's clothes are on a rod in the basement right now, but we told her she could keep some things up in this room until she gets her own closet. Someday. :-)
And look--it's the very first load of laundry!!!! How neat is that?! Only very few people will know how to say "how neat is that" properly and I'm pretty sure none of them read this blog. ~sigh~ Oh, well. Let me add, That's pretty neat!
Monday, February 20, 2012
Staying Caught Up
It doesn't feel like I have much to blog about, but I really don't want to fall behind again, so...
It STILL feels like we just can't get into high gear on the house. We've been spinning our wheels for a week now! We have high hopes and great aspirations each day, but it seems like we keep getting distracted with other things we weren't expecting or just running out of steam. James and I have both been so tired. That sure doesn't help.
On Saturday we hung a few more cabinet doors in the kitchen, finished poly-ing the doors in the utility room, surely did a few other things I'm forgetting (!), then headed to Best Buy to look at the fridges they had on sale. James had a gift card, so we decided to stop at Red Lobster on our way. Bad decision. They were WAY crowded and we knew we'd have to wait to be seate, but we were in no hurry. Our first mistake was sitting directly in front of the lobster tank. Surprisingly, it is Sam and not Joe who has a tender heart toward animals. He went and looked at all of the lobsters and one of them crawled up to the edge of the tank "and looked right at me" and all that. Then he sat back down and got to thinking about all of those nice lobsters being tossed into boiling water and cooked and eaten. It was more than he could handle. He pulled his hat down low over his eyes, sinched his knees up to his chest and hid the best he could while trying to choke back the tears. One of the employees grabbed the stick and pulled a lobster out of the tank and I thought Sam was going to totally lose it, but she was just showing it to a kid who had asked, then put him back in the tank. Needless to say, Sam was not in very good spirits for the duration of our meal. And nobody dared order lobster. Ha! We never have before, but there's no way we could have done it that day!
We were finally seated... and then finally had our drink order taken... and then finally had the drinks arrive... and then a long time later had the garlic cheese bisquits arrive... and then finally had some soup show up... and then finally (way after we should have already eaten and been gone) had the waitress show up to tell us they were out of one of the items we had ordered and we'd need to choose something else... shall I continue? Ha! We never did get the re-ordered meal. We didn't have an extra hour to wait for it. ;-) Needless to say, James spoke with a manager before we left. He made me stay at the table, but he assures me that he was nice. I really want to believe him... HA!
We stopped by Best Buy, but didn't find a fridge that will work for us. We decided to check Sears again since we were so close. We found one that I really, really like, but it’s a little pricey and has a shiny finish that is bound to scratch easily. The sort of bumpy finish that all refrigerators used to have seems to be on the way out. Anyway, we’re going to do some more shopping around and see what we can come up with.
For some unknown reason we decided to leave Sears and actually venture into the mall itself. Actually the reason is known. I just remembered it. James was really hoping to find an Orange Julius. Do they have Orange Julius around here??? This was my first time actually being in the mall here. On a Saturday. Evening. We’d only been walking through the hallway for a few minutes when I looked at James and said, “What are we DOING here???” I hate malls, but most especially on Saturdays and evenings, much less a Saturday evening. I just feel all gross and dirty and contaminated--like I just waded through a pool of worldliness and can't wait to go wash it all off! Ha! Of course, I found out today that the mall here has a Lego Store so we'll have to go there again some time (Sam will be in heaven!), but we'll be sure to do it on a Thursday morning or something--anything will be better than Saturday night!
Sunday School was interesting yesterday. First of all, we had to change classrooms. Apparently a mouse died in the wall or something because it stinks REALLY bad. It didn't seem too bad the first time I walked in, but it didn't take long to realize how bad it was. So we hauled a table across the hallway into a different classroom. I had Zack and Jackson for class--then Jacob and Jadyn showed up toward the end. I'm not sure any of them remember what we learned, but they DO remember the glue exploding. They were having a hard time getting it to come out of the bottle, so I was attempting to clear the tip for them. I finally turned it upright and gave it a little squeeze hoping to see where it was clogged up. You know the rest. The was a big POW and I was covered. It was all over my face and in my bangs. Ha!!! The kids just CRACKED UP. I had to laugh. It really was a grand explosion. I excused myself and went to clean up in the restroom, but was unable to do much with my hair. It wasn't regular school glue, it was heavy duty craft glue. Naturally. I ran into Brother Washburn on my way back to the classroom. He's our Sunday School Superintendant and I had aready run into him two or three times since Sunday School had begun, needing to run to the classroom to get this, or into the office to copy that, etc. I'm sure he was wondering if I ever actually go to the room where my students are. HA!
Sunday night we had Communion & Feetwashing service. That is always SUCH a blessing. I think I understand and appreciate it more and more as time goes on. We went with the Hopkins and Ridlespurges and Washburns to the Sunday night spot (McAlisters) after service.
Today we FINALLY succeeded in getting the rest of the kitchen cabinet doors hung. Is it exaggerating to say that it was a nightmare? We hung and unhung and rehung and switched doors and drilled new holes and pushed and pulled and stripped out screws and scratched paint all over the place and took doors off again and shaved them down with the saw and, oh, you name it. HA! It was CRAZY. But at the end of the day they are all ON, they are relatively straight, and they all open and close--some more easily than others, but there comes a time when you just have to call it good enough. James cut the rest of the sheetrock out of the ceiling space in the kitchen afterwards, so then I spent about 45 minutes cleaning powder and dust off of all of the newly hung doors. Tomorrow morning they'll be ready for me to do LOTS and LOTS of touch-up painting in red and green and yellow. Not sure how long that will take, but once it dries real good I'll start putting the poly on them.
The other accomplishment of the day was moving the children out of our room. WA-HOO!!! The community room was fun while it lasted, but it's time has passed. The room was trashed all the time--five people's beds and all of the STUFF they feel like they need stacked on the floor beside the beds. (By "beds" of course we mean sleeping bags and air mattresses.) And the kids stuff never stayed in stacks--it was continually scattered all around the room and it makes me batty to not have a clean place to go to, especially to try to read or pray or sleep. So this evening we hauled all of the kids' bedding and junk to the living room and got them set up out there, then cleaned our bedroom up. ~Aaahhhh~ It feels sooooo good. And I'm amazed at how BIG this room is now that all of that other STUFF isn't here anymore! Ha!
That's about it. I will post a few pictures of Sam before I go. The first is--obviously--his attempt to look like his Dad... with an electrical tape beard and "pokey-up" hair. In his Dad's glasses I think he looks like Melissa Hendricks' boy, Dan. Cute. :-)
And here he is sleeping in his bin. He found this a week or two ago and decided he wanted to use it for a bed. He's been sleeping in it (or at least paritally in it--ha!) ever since. Goofy kid!
I LOVE how he's sleeping in this shot. Hahahaha! CRACKS ME UP. Joe's sleeping position is good, too, but Sam's--I just have NO IDEA how a person can sleep like that! By the way, notice all of the STUFF everywhere??? THAT is why I had to move the kids out of our room. My sanity depended on it. ;-)
It STILL feels like we just can't get into high gear on the house. We've been spinning our wheels for a week now! We have high hopes and great aspirations each day, but it seems like we keep getting distracted with other things we weren't expecting or just running out of steam. James and I have both been so tired. That sure doesn't help.
On Saturday we hung a few more cabinet doors in the kitchen, finished poly-ing the doors in the utility room, surely did a few other things I'm forgetting (!), then headed to Best Buy to look at the fridges they had on sale. James had a gift card, so we decided to stop at Red Lobster on our way. Bad decision. They were WAY crowded and we knew we'd have to wait to be seate, but we were in no hurry. Our first mistake was sitting directly in front of the lobster tank. Surprisingly, it is Sam and not Joe who has a tender heart toward animals. He went and looked at all of the lobsters and one of them crawled up to the edge of the tank "and looked right at me" and all that. Then he sat back down and got to thinking about all of those nice lobsters being tossed into boiling water and cooked and eaten. It was more than he could handle. He pulled his hat down low over his eyes, sinched his knees up to his chest and hid the best he could while trying to choke back the tears. One of the employees grabbed the stick and pulled a lobster out of the tank and I thought Sam was going to totally lose it, but she was just showing it to a kid who had asked, then put him back in the tank. Needless to say, Sam was not in very good spirits for the duration of our meal. And nobody dared order lobster. Ha! We never have before, but there's no way we could have done it that day!
We were finally seated... and then finally had our drink order taken... and then finally had the drinks arrive... and then a long time later had the garlic cheese bisquits arrive... and then finally had some soup show up... and then finally (way after we should have already eaten and been gone) had the waitress show up to tell us they were out of one of the items we had ordered and we'd need to choose something else... shall I continue? Ha! We never did get the re-ordered meal. We didn't have an extra hour to wait for it. ;-) Needless to say, James spoke with a manager before we left. He made me stay at the table, but he assures me that he was nice. I really want to believe him... HA!
We stopped by Best Buy, but didn't find a fridge that will work for us. We decided to check Sears again since we were so close. We found one that I really, really like, but it’s a little pricey and has a shiny finish that is bound to scratch easily. The sort of bumpy finish that all refrigerators used to have seems to be on the way out. Anyway, we’re going to do some more shopping around and see what we can come up with.
For some unknown reason we decided to leave Sears and actually venture into the mall itself. Actually the reason is known. I just remembered it. James was really hoping to find an Orange Julius. Do they have Orange Julius around here??? This was my first time actually being in the mall here. On a Saturday. Evening. We’d only been walking through the hallway for a few minutes when I looked at James and said, “What are we DOING here???” I hate malls, but most especially on Saturdays and evenings, much less a Saturday evening. I just feel all gross and dirty and contaminated--like I just waded through a pool of worldliness and can't wait to go wash it all off! Ha! Of course, I found out today that the mall here has a Lego Store so we'll have to go there again some time (Sam will be in heaven!), but we'll be sure to do it on a Thursday morning or something--anything will be better than Saturday night!
Sunday School was interesting yesterday. First of all, we had to change classrooms. Apparently a mouse died in the wall or something because it stinks REALLY bad. It didn't seem too bad the first time I walked in, but it didn't take long to realize how bad it was. So we hauled a table across the hallway into a different classroom. I had Zack and Jackson for class--then Jacob and Jadyn showed up toward the end. I'm not sure any of them remember what we learned, but they DO remember the glue exploding. They were having a hard time getting it to come out of the bottle, so I was attempting to clear the tip for them. I finally turned it upright and gave it a little squeeze hoping to see where it was clogged up. You know the rest. The was a big POW and I was covered. It was all over my face and in my bangs. Ha!!! The kids just CRACKED UP. I had to laugh. It really was a grand explosion. I excused myself and went to clean up in the restroom, but was unable to do much with my hair. It wasn't regular school glue, it was heavy duty craft glue. Naturally. I ran into Brother Washburn on my way back to the classroom. He's our Sunday School Superintendant and I had aready run into him two or three times since Sunday School had begun, needing to run to the classroom to get this, or into the office to copy that, etc. I'm sure he was wondering if I ever actually go to the room where my students are. HA!
Sunday night we had Communion & Feetwashing service. That is always SUCH a blessing. I think I understand and appreciate it more and more as time goes on. We went with the Hopkins and Ridlespurges and Washburns to the Sunday night spot (McAlisters) after service.
Today we FINALLY succeeded in getting the rest of the kitchen cabinet doors hung. Is it exaggerating to say that it was a nightmare? We hung and unhung and rehung and switched doors and drilled new holes and pushed and pulled and stripped out screws and scratched paint all over the place and took doors off again and shaved them down with the saw and, oh, you name it. HA! It was CRAZY. But at the end of the day they are all ON, they are relatively straight, and they all open and close--some more easily than others, but there comes a time when you just have to call it good enough. James cut the rest of the sheetrock out of the ceiling space in the kitchen afterwards, so then I spent about 45 minutes cleaning powder and dust off of all of the newly hung doors. Tomorrow morning they'll be ready for me to do LOTS and LOTS of touch-up painting in red and green and yellow. Not sure how long that will take, but once it dries real good I'll start putting the poly on them.
The other accomplishment of the day was moving the children out of our room. WA-HOO!!! The community room was fun while it lasted, but it's time has passed. The room was trashed all the time--five people's beds and all of the STUFF they feel like they need stacked on the floor beside the beds. (By "beds" of course we mean sleeping bags and air mattresses.) And the kids stuff never stayed in stacks--it was continually scattered all around the room and it makes me batty to not have a clean place to go to, especially to try to read or pray or sleep. So this evening we hauled all of the kids' bedding and junk to the living room and got them set up out there, then cleaned our bedroom up. ~Aaahhhh~ It feels sooooo good. And I'm amazed at how BIG this room is now that all of that other STUFF isn't here anymore! Ha!
That's about it. I will post a few pictures of Sam before I go. The first is--obviously--his attempt to look like his Dad... with an electrical tape beard and "pokey-up" hair. In his Dad's glasses I think he looks like Melissa Hendricks' boy, Dan. Cute. :-)
And here he is sleeping in his bin. He found this a week or two ago and decided he wanted to use it for a bed. He's been sleeping in it (or at least paritally in it--ha!) ever since. Goofy kid!
I LOVE how he's sleeping in this shot. Hahahaha! CRACKS ME UP. Joe's sleeping position is good, too, but Sam's--I just have NO IDEA how a person can sleep like that! By the way, notice all of the STUFF everywhere??? THAT is why I had to move the kids out of our room. My sanity depended on it. ;-)
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