A Project Completed

I CLEANED MY SCRAPBOOK TABLE!!!

This is news of monumental proportions.

This task has been on my to do list for about 9 months. It's too low a priority to ever get to the top of the list.

I am so lucky to have a desk for my scrapbooking supplies. I found it at an estate sale for only $40. I was so excited to have a place to leave a project out, so I could work on it a little at a time in spare moments, instead of having to put everything away and get it back out again every time I had a moment to work on it.

The problem is, I don't have any spare moments. So the incomplete project I had sitting out on the desk never got worked on. Instead, the desk gradually became the receptacle for all things crafty that needed to find a home, as well as the location to dump any unfinished craft projects, paper pieces, photos, ribbons, cards, letters, and other memorabilia. We have been adding stuff to the pile on the desk for ages without ever putting any of it away. When housecleaning, we always ignored this particular mess. For almost a year.

I can hardly believe I had enough free time to spend an afternoon working on it, interruption-free. When I finally got to the end of the task, after about 5 hours of sorting, filing and purging, I was filled with the desire to scrapbook. I'd better resist the temptation, since that's how the last mess got started.

Reality Check

Looking back over my past blog posts, I can detect when I'm feeling crowded and when I have room to do my own thing by the frequency of my posts. I think I'm crowded more often than not these days.

But not today. I am hopeful that my weekend is going to be filled with room to do my own thing.

Alterations are done; payroll, job costing, invoicing, check balancing, and bill paying are all done; mending is done(I started working on that one in between alterations); inputting my financial data from the three weeks that my data was lost is done; 75% of the weeding is done.

My house, on the other hand, is a complete and total disaster. Dust everywhere, clutter overflowing every room, and shoes, socks, books, toys, and other miscellaneous paraphernalia from 6 different individuals left here, there, and everywhere.

I'll probably clean this weekend.

That's ok. I like to clean. But I wish I had this month's book on tape.

Alterations

I volunteered to help with alterations at my girls' dance class. I thought I was giving myself an out by telling them I can't do much more than sew a hem or tack up a strap. But inevitably, I was in over my head. Since I was already there at class waiting for kids so many days a week, I thought it would be no big deal to offer to do alterations at that time. I envisioned sewing hems at a leisurely pace while chatting with friends.

Not so. Every Wednesday I've arrived at class to find a line of girls waiting and ready, costumes on inside out. Far too many of the girls have costumes that are too large; I've had to take in several waistbands, and many of the hems have drawstrings that have to be moved and replaced. The first couple of weeks I thought I was going to lose it. I was bringing home piles of costumes to alter at home, when I don't even have time to cook dinner or play with my kids anymore. I felt so stressed about those stupid costumes! That was around the same time that my computer crashed and I lost all my data.

I'm feeling a little more relaxed about it now; the pace has slowed down, and I'm not taking home 5 or 6 costumes each week anymore. I enjoy being able to help, and while I don't agree with many aspects of the studio's operating procedures, I do think that if this is what the girls want to do, it makes sense for me to be involved if there is a need. So, in spite of my stressed state that first few weeks, I'm not sorry I offered to do the alterations. I do, however, wish I didn't always find life so frighteningly busy... and volunteering for once more thing certainly never helps with that.

Gardens Here and There

Last month, while in Portland for dance competition, we spent an afternoon visiting the Japanese Gardens. It was so beautiful, restful and serene. I wish my garden looked like that! I had hoped it would give me some ideas, but so much of what they had created related to the climate of the area, with mosses and other wet loving plants everywhere. I would love to view a Japanese style garden created in a dry, arid climate.

In the meantime, I am finding a bit of time here and there to do a little weeding and pruning in my garden. Things could use a bit of a face lift and some shifting around, but I haven't found the time for that. I think my next project will be to eliminate the grass(weed) path and replace it with shredded bark. The tough part will be moving a mountain of rocks I've unearthed and left laying in a pile on the path. I thought it would be great to create a dry stream bed with the rocks, but have no idea where to put them. It would be so much better to move them only once!

The front yard is still bare dirt. Sometimes I'm afraid it will always be that way. With our bathroom remodel project done, next on the list is a sprinkler system. The estimate we got was way out of our price range, but we just don't have the time or know-how to do it ourselves. Clint has a friend with some experience in irrigation systems; maybe I'll get lucky and we can hire him to install them for us. It would be so lovely to have a front yard again.

Nothing to Show

I can't seem to get anything done these days. My list is unchanging; I don't ever seem to get anything crossed off. Thinking productively, what have I done lately?

Over the last two weekends, I cleaned the garage. It was truly a nightmare. Clint hauled the ruined piano and lots of other junk off to the dumps. What a relief!!! That piano has been bugging me for ages. Of course, there's still a big pile of Clint's work tools in the middle of one bay, so I can only park one car inside. But at least I can move around in there now. I have a terrible habit, once the garage starts getting disheveled, of just stepping in the door and flinging, instead of trying to find an actual spot to put something away. So, it's my own fault really. But I really, really hate cleaning the garage.

I took the girls to the mall. They've been asking for months, and I just haven't had time. I realized I was never going to have time, so I just did it anyway. Now they want to go to Wal-Mart.

I tried out Entrees Made Easy. It's taken a month to get over the guilt and become comfortable with what semms like a lot of money for a meal, but I'm pretty sold on it now. My family loves the home-cooked meals and trying different menus. I'm so grateful about the time it's saving me I could just cry. Funny thing is, even with half our dinners taking half the time, I still don't seem to be getting to the stuff I'm supposed to be doing.

I caught up on job costing for all Clint's work since January. Oh, and I'm still doing payroll every week, although that's about it for me and business work lately.

Homeschooling. Tamzin just finished with her math for this year, and she is so excited. She also just finished her first grade reader. She is so proud of herself. We're now reading the Spiderwick Chronicles, recommended by Chelee. She loves them. It's her first foray into chapter books, which she had always been to impatient for before. I'm working with the older girls on writing and history a few times a week, and now Shelby wants me to read her Environmental Science book so we can discuss the concepts together. It's fascinating, but it takes time! I do the same thing with history, and we have great conversations together, but it means I have 'homework', too.

Gave the girls their annual "test", required for homeschooling. It's a pain in the neck, but at least it's done now, and the girls are happy with their scores. They feel they accurately reflect where they are at, for the most part.

Cleaned the house a few times, with help from the girls.

Went to the park a few times. Hosted a play date.

Took the girls to Portland for Dance Competition. Definitely a worthwhile experience. Went to OMSI, too. The girls had a great time there.

Nursed the family through a round of the flu, and then a bout of colds.

Threw a birthday party for Gillian at BounceArena. Definitely a fun way to go.

So what am I not getting to?

The taxes. I'm 80% done, and stuck. Knowing I'm going to owe a fortune, since I underpaid my estimated taxes last year, makes it hard to feel motivated to get it done. But I've got 3 birthdays and another out of town dance competition to think about in April, so I shouldn't be putting it off like this.

Fashion Revue. If I don't get the girls started soon, we will be so crowded later. It's not so easy to "help" 3 girls sew cool outfits. It's harder than doing it myself.

My Blog. My Photos. My Scrapbook Table, which seriously has not been cleaned off in a year, and has papers and photos piled high (another fling spot). The dishes, which is what I should be doing right now. Gotta go!

Happy Valentine's Day

My Valentine's Day gift to Clint. Flowers, candy, Emmets (he loves a dash in his coffee in the morning) and a handmade card. I decided to go traditional this year. I don't think I've ever given him candy before. I'm pretty sure I've given him flowers before, but he doesn't remember it. After he was asleep last night, I brought in the flowers and arranged them in the beautiful vase I got for Christmas, and left everything artfully arranged by the coffee machine, so he would see it all first thing in the morning, while I was still sleeping.

I gave each of the girls a heart shaped box of See's candy. I've never done that before; it felt decadent. I gave them roses, too, three peach roses each. I bought a dozen roses and arranged them in four vases after they went to bed last night, then made valentines to go with them. I was rushing, so they were quite uninspired. I love homemade valentines. Usually I put a lot of creative effort into valentines for the girls, but this year I just didn't get to it until the last minute.

My Valentine's Day booty...so far. Beautiful handmade cards from all the girls, a sweet card from Clint with the perfect sentiment, and a box of dark chocolate pecan turtles(my favorite, yum!) and chocolate covered strawberries from Clint. Last night he gave me the candy, saying it wouldn't keep until today.

Today is our anniversary. We probably wouldn't make such a thing of Valentine's Day otherwise. It makes sense to reaffirm our attachment to each other. It feels good to know I wouldn't have chosen any differently if I had it to do over again.

I don't have a "real" gift for him. I couldn't think of anything. I bought him a thermometer with lots of fancy settings on it, but I think I'm going to return it. It's kind of boring.

I don't think we're going to make it out on a date this year. The kids have been sick for days, plus they have dance class most evenings, and he leaves for Lake Mead on Saturday. So we'll celebrate with romantic traditional stuff, and it will be just right.

The Eggs Our Birds Laid for Us While We Were Gone

19 eggs in 3 days. Can't complain about that!

The View from our Hotel

We went to Bremerton to see Clint's dad last weekend. He was in the hospital recently and had just returned home. Thankfully there was nothing seriously wrong with him. He's not been taking great care of himself, and was weak and malnourished. He had a stroke last year and has been depressed and anxious ever since.

After ruling out other options, we decided to bring Chico, our chihuahua, with us. This meant staying in a motel instead of with Clint's dad and stepmom. We found a great hotel close to Clint's dad's place, but it was unavailable Friday night. We decided it would be worth it to switch lodgings after one night if we could stay in this hotel, which had an excersise and game room, indoor pool, an ocean view, and a killer rate. For Friday night, we made reservations at a nearby motel that would take dogs, but when we got there, the room was unacceptable. Linoleum flooring and only 6 inches of clearance around the two queen beds. With 6 of us in a room, 2 have to sleep on the floor, so it just wouldn't work. We sat in the parking lot calling places, trying to find someone that could accomodate all of us and the dog.

We did, and things worked out great, but it was stressful in the meantime. Rhiannon had been feeling poorly prior leaving on the trip. I had suggested it might be better for the two of us to stay home and let Clint and the other girls go without us. We couldn't expose an 83 year old man in poor health to a virus. But Clint and Rhiannon felt it was possible that her looming sick feelings were temporary, so off we went. It was clear by the time we reached Ellensburg that Rhiannon was pretty sick. She was feverish and dazed. She doesn't travel well anyway, so she felt pretty awful. Waiting in the car while we struggled to find accomodations after a 4 1/2 hour drive was agony.

In the end, we got a great deal on two rooms at a Comfort Inn in Port Orchard. We've never stayed in two rooms before, so for Clint and I it was like a mini holiday. We haven't been in a hotel room without a child since our wedding night. We all ate out at a really nice Mexican Restaurant, trying to make the best of an uncomfortable situation. Rhiannon was like the walking dead the whole time, but had vetoed the idea of ordering a pizza in our room. In the morning we ate their continental breakfast with homemade waffles, and then Clint and the girls went to see grandpa while Rhiannon and I spent an incredibly boring morning watching motel TV.

At checkout time Clint returned to the motel and moved us to the other hotel, which had allowed us to check in early due to Rhiannon's illness. After unpacking and getting the girls settled, we left them there at the hotel, and Clint and I went to visit Clint's dad. Then, I came back to the hotel to watch over Rhiannon, and he and the girls went back for dinner with his dad. After they got back I went out and picked up some dinner for Rhiannon. In the morning I swam and had breakfast in the hotel with the girls while Clint went to visit his dad on his own.

Tamzin had a great time collecting shells on the beach outside our room. We had a first floor room with a sliding door and a fireplace; the girls had an adjoining room with it's own sliding door looking out on Puget Sound. Gillian and Tamzin loved the pool, although we didn't have much time to swim with all that was going on.

Clint's dad was grumpy and uncommunicative. He would often interrupt the conversation to say "I don't want to talk about that". Clint was tense and worried after seeing his used-to-be-genial dad. I was concerned about Rhiannon, whose fever was very high and who was having difficulty getting rest under the circumstances. We ended up arguing our last night and morning, which was a bummer since we were staying in such a nice place, and it should have been great.

The last time we visited Clint's dad we stayed with them, which was great because we could help with the cooking, and had lots of time for visiting. While staying in a hotel had the potential to be fun, it made it harder to have a meaningful visit. I don't think Clint felt better after seeing his dad, and I'm not sure his dad did either. He seemed to be aware that Clint was struggling to manage his family and his sick daughter, and so insisted that Clint not return after his Sunday morning visit, but instead take Rhiannon home. I had wanted to make this trip with Clint so I could help keep his stepmom entertained, so he could have one-on-one time with his dad. But I ended up being no help at all.

Clint worked so hard to make the trip comfortable for me and the girls, when he should have been focusing on his dad. But he's a problem solver, and making things nice for his family was something he could DO, while I think at his dad's he felt quite helpless. It's been 9 months, and no one has been able to figure out how to cheer up his dad, and they understandably worry about his unhappiness sending his health into a downward spin.

I think we will all have pleasant memories of this trip (except sick Rhiannon) but we didn't really accomplish what we had hoped to with Clint's dad. At least we got to visit.

F in Blogging

I'm not very good at blogging, I guess.

I think I'm losing interest, too. I had envisoned my blog as a way for me to keep in touch with friends and family that I don't talk to all the time, people who might want to know what I'm up to. It hasn't worked out that way, though. My faithful blog readers are people who already know what I'm up to on a regular basis, more or less. And those I thought would be interested in knowing my day to day activities? Not interested, I guess.

So, given the always overwhelmed state of my to-do list, blogging has become less and less and less of a priority, until now I wonder what the point is at all.

I was going to post a half dozen pictures detailing how I've spent the last month, but I can't get blogger to upload them. Must be a temporary glitch.

Turkey Day

Thanksgiving was perfect. Relaxed and laid back. No company, just Clint and the kids and I. Clint, Rhiannon and I spent the morning cooking companionably, while the other girls played GameCube together.

An early dinner, a meal of all the traditional favorites, voted on by the family so that everyone got to have what they most wanted. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, cranberry apple stuffing, rolls, fresh green beans with bacon, sweet potato casserole, fruit salad, pumpkin pie and dutch apple pie.

A game of Apples to Apples over dessert, followed by a family movie and an afternoon doze. Who could ask for anything more?

November's Project

As if I don't already have enough to do, I made a promise to "make over" Rhiannon's bedroom for her next birthday. I know she would let me put if off if I said I was just too busy, but I figured I just needed to get it over with, or it would be yet another project hanging over my head.

Painting paneling is soooo much work. It takes 3 coats of primer to cover the wood stain, then 2 coats of the color coat. Plus, the ceiling hasn't been painted in 45 years or so, so it takes several coats to cover that as well. To do a truly good job, the base trim has to be removed and painted separately, then replaced. Then there is the edge trim that hides the panel edges at corners and ceiling. Plus, you can't forget the closet, which has to be completely dismantled to really get in there and cover all the surfaces.

On the positive side...it's done! She is now moved back in to her very pink bedroom. I wish I could say the job is over. But painting is just the beginning of a room "makeover". Next we painted her dresser and hanging shelves, purchased and installed a closet organizer, spent several days sorting through her old stuff, deciding what to keep and what was not "new room worthy", and finally, set out shopping for bedding and accessories. Here we have run into a snag; the style of bedding she wants is nowhere to be found. We will have to either figure something else out, or (horrors) sew it ourselves.

To make things even more challenging, Rhiannon and I often butt heads about the best way to do things, or what we think will look or work the best. So while in theory I believe that it's her room, and she should be able to do what she likes with it, in practice I'm only willing to shell out the big bucks for something I also feel comfortable with, which means I get lots of unhappy vibes from a diva who feels I'm messing with her groove. Ouch.

It's tough to take after working so hard painting a bedroom, while my bulbs languish in the laundry room because I don't have time to plant them.

Pastry Chef

More goodies baked by Rhiannon.
This time she made homemade cream puffs. Sooo Yummy!

Baking has become the activity of choice for this girl when she's bored.

It makes keeping to a low fat/sweet lifestyle challenging. It's hard to eat just one!

Truffles

Thursday was an in and out day for me. One child to the dentist, another to dance class, another to driving lessons.

Somehow, in my absence, my resident chef and truffle fairy, Rhiannon, managed to make chocolate-covered, coffee liqueur-flavored truffles. The process involved a number of stages of cooking and cooling, yet she managed to keep it all a secret until the moment when I walked into my bedroom to find a wrapped box of the little delights waiting for me, with a note that said I'm the sweetest mom around.

Of course, moments before, I was telling them, in an irritated tone, how uncool it was that they all kept looking at me, whispering, and giggling. I felt like I was in high school. Then I found the box, and the note, and I cried. I so rarely feel really appreciated, even though I know they all do, that I was just overwhelmed, especially since I had not been at my most loving.

The truffles were amazing and delicious. I can't believe Rhiannon whipped them up by herself. She is so confident and adventurous with her cooking, it amazes me. Tonight she made a cheese souffle for dinner. I've been meaning to make a cheese souffle for 12 years, and still haven't gotten around to it. She's got talent.

Halloween with Friends

I am so lucky to have such a cool bunch of people to hang out with on Halloween. It's more fun every year! I enjoy Halloween as much now as I did when I was a kid. The creative costumes, the spooky houses with elaborate and scary decorations, walking around the neighborhood after dark, warming up afterwards with hot apple cider and conversation...what's not to like?

Oh, and just check out the spoils of the evening. It's enough to open up a candy store!

Gutted

This is it. A bathroom remodel in progress. Things are going great.

The plumbers have "roughed in" the plumbing and installed the tub/shower. The electricians have re-wired the wiring. I ordered the vanity cabinets, which came in today. The drywallers are scheduled for Monday, and Clint tells me they will not only drywall, tape, and texture, but also paint. I thought that job would belong to yours truly! I tried to talk him out of it, but he says he just wants to get it done, and that they will be faster.

After that, Clint will install the cabinets. I need to buy light fixtures, a sink and faucets for the sink and tub this weekend(and pick out a paint color...lavender, maybe?). Then, finally, the electrician and plumber will come back to install fixtures, and we will be done!

UPDATE: As of 11/3 we are drywalled, taped, textured and primered. Now it's just paint, cabinets and fixtures, and decorating!!!

Hand Sewing

I spent Saturday sewing a mermaid costume for Tamzin...by hand.

First, I couldn't find a patttern that looked like what we wanted. We were trying to avoid the typical shell bra with nude fabric over the belly (like Ariel) look, but couldn't find a pattern for anything different. I envisioned a long slinky dress with a flared hem. I had some cool knit fabric with sequins that I got as a selvage end on discount years ago(thinking it would be perfect for a mermaid costume). So I laid Tamzin down on the fabric, guessed on the shape, and started cutting. It's a simple sheath style dress, but my tempermental sewing machine has always resisted knits, and it absolutely refused to sew on the sequined fabric. After 30 minutes of struggling to get it to work, I remembered a bird costume I sewed some years back out of the same type of fabric. I ended up sewing it by hand, because the machine wouldn't work.

So, I pulled out the needle and thread, asked Tamzin to read to me while I sewed, and started stitching.

It wasn't too bad...if I'd been around back when everything was sewn by had, it probably would have been one of those jobs I would enjoy. I'm happy with the costume; it looks just like I'd hoped it would. It probably took me 4-5 hours to put it together, maybe twice as long as it would have taken with the machine. It's not very durable, though. If she is rough on it, it will not hold up well. As long as it makes it past Halloween...

Project Progress

Clearly I don't pay enough attention to my sidebar. I guess I'm not paying that much attention to my blog in general these days.

Anyway, I took a look and...my how things have changed!

My house is now painted! Woot! It happened last month, while I was trekking back and forth to Puyallup with Rhiannon. It took 12 months and half a dozen discussions to make the phone call to a painter, and 2 days to prep and paint the house. Clint thinks I should be more appreciative of a task completed, and all he accomplished(he didn't actually do any painting; he just made the phone call), but I would have loved to have eliminated the waiting and reminding part. OK, I admit, he probably made more like 5 or 6 phone calls. You know, getting two bids, then discussing the bid, then arranging the date to paint. I still think it could have happened sooner. I know, I'm so ungrateful. I admit if I'd wanted it done so badly, I should have made the calls myself. But he's the one with the contractor contacts and the right lingo for getting a good deal.

The house looks great, but the kids are unimpressed. They can't believe I really paint our house boring BROWN. It's actually a lovely shade of tan, and I like it.

Now we are making progress on another sidebar oldie, remodeling the downstairs bathroom. Clint tore out all the old drywall and jackhammered a portion of the floor tile to reveal an old drain that we will be using when we install the bathtub. I've ordered cabinets so we will finally have a place to put towels and toothbrushes (after all the plumbing is done, of course). Now we just need to schedule the plumber & electrician. Clint is supposed to be making the calls...

Driving Lessons

It's pretty weird sitting in the passenger seat while your child is in the driver's seat. It's amazing how grown up she looks.

I don't really feel qualified to teach someone to drive. It's pretty hard to explain how to think about a dozen different --- but equally important --- things, all at the same time. I'm trying to keep myself from explaining too much, since that seems to be my normal pattern. But then it will seem like I'm not explaining enough, which is definitely not good.

When I enrolled her in Driving School, I figured there was plenty of time to get out on the road driving, a little at a time. But she has to take 4 drives with the instructor, and she wanted to get some time in on the road before getting in the car with him.

I'm awfully proud of her for being so determined and sticking it out, even though I suspect at times she's not enjoying it (I hated Driver's Ed in school, and ended up not getting my license until I was 18 because driving was too intimidating). I don't want her to feel forced into it, though I think it will make dance classes and CBC easier next year.

My hope is that if we start early, she will have so much practice that she won't feel so uncomfortable a year from now.

I really miss Munchkin. I have bad dreams that wake me up thinking about her. I know I just have to let go, but I worry about her. Is someone taking care of her? Does she miss us? Is she scared or confused? Does she wonder why we haven't come to rescue her?

I think if she had been hit or taken by a coyote, we would have found a sign of it. We've searched the area and the roadsides several times. She had never wandered beyond our mailbox or our across-the-field neighbor's place, so it's hard to imagine she would have done so this time. We discovered she was missing within 2 hours; how far could she have gone unless someone picked her up? There were no stray Schnauzers taken to Pet Emergency Services, which is what would have happened if she'd been hit and someone had tried to get her to a vet on a Saturday evening. There were no found ads posted in the paper. No one has answered our posters or ads.

I don't bring her up to the kids, but all three of the younger girls have had nightmares or trouble sleeping because they feel sad and wish she were back home with us. It's hard.

Neah Bay

(This post is from August 11...I stuck it in drafts and never got back to it...how lame is that?!).

We had a great time on our vacation at Neah Bay. We did lots of fishing for Sea Bass and other assorted fish. The limit there is 10 fish per person per day, so a family our size can stock up an enormous supply. We brought home about 60-75 pounds of fillets. Each morning at about 5:30, we boated out to sea to take advantage of the early morning bite

Rhiannon got seasick the first day, and stayed at camp with extended family after that. I did fine the first few days, but got seasick on the third day. I managed to keep fishing, but decided to sleep in the last two mornings and let others do the fishing. Shelby and Gillian were into the fishing...they kept Clint so busy netting their fish, he had a hard time keeping his own pole in the water!

The weather was quite cool (55-65), but we packed accordingly so it wasn't bad. Now that we're back in the heat, I kinda miss the cold!

The kids all loved exploring the tidepools and rock climbing near the shore. We had some great finds, like a purple starfish in the process of consuming a mussel. Tamzin and her younger cousins spent hours playing in the sand. She and Gillian played in the water all day too, in spite of a water temp of about 49-55 degrees. Clint and I got to go kayaking a few times, which was my favorite part of the trip. It's a great way to sightsee, and thrilling to be on the (almost) open ocean.

We also visited a Makah Indian Museum, and took a hike through the forest to the "most northwest point of the Continental US". It was so beautiful, but I didn't get any pictures, because I left my camera behind at camp :(

The best news about the trip is that I managed to keep up my running schedule, only missing one day. I've never been able to keep up an exercise routine while on vacation before, so I'm pretty excited. It was fun running in a new place; I did some exploring, got some private time, and got to see Neah Bay from a different view.