Good morning again!

I have survived Dh trip. I thought I was going to get so much done in the evenings, but actually I was just exhausted.

Today will be a big laundry and clean up day, and I need to get heat lamps set up in the barn because it's going to drop to single digits. But I don't have to go anywhere.

Yesterday was a good day at school. The kids had a mini makers market at lunch and I bought a few trinkets for stocking stuffers. Some of our kids are very talented.

Thursday also went well. I didn't have a lot of work for my last class, but the firing went well and it was a nice social ending for the group. Several of us are talking about starting a regular alternative firing group to meet once a month for a full day in the spring. I made it to my staff meeting, and stayed a bit to get things together for the kids in case of a snow day - which we didn't have, so I was ahead on Friday.

I ended up just watching the boys at their house for a couple of hours while dsil - who was not feeling well - took a nap. Then I took them to the studio party where we had a good time. Bean was very proud that he helped make the pumpkin muffins we took as our contribution. Even more when the host gave a short welcome speech mid meal and said that if you hadn't gotten one yet, you should because they were delicious.

I took a pot in a bag for the exchange and had Bean choose which bag I should take home. I got a very pretty bowl and told him he's a good picker. That's a 1 for 1, so I don't have to count it.

My biggest day of the week was Wednesday though. I found someone to take the younger pottery classes next year. It was important that admin and I all agreed because I will be sharing space and working very closely with this person. I wasn't sure how I would feel when the quest became a reality, but the answer is that I feel good about it.

I will be proposing to work tu/th mornings and all day Wednesdays. That is the same number of hours I have now, but fewer classes (6 instead of 8) and students because tu/th classes are the same class twice a week, so the administrative burden is lower. If any of my classes don't fill, I will work less. I find I am ok with this.

I have had a lazy start to my morning and am ready to get moving now. I hope everyone has a good day!

Good morning.

Lila, I understand what you are saying, but I also don't want to imagine you like that. I put the image in my head and then imagined the dog and children quieting down, the phone calls ending, the computer behaving, and in general peace descending upon you.

Messi hang in there! Some days it's ok if it just doesn't get much worse.

We recently saw a couple we like but only see once a year. They asked how our year had gone and I thought for a minute about the past year and then said "fantastic." "(Buddy) had his surgery and it went great. He isn't allowed to play the trumpet and will probably never run a marathon, but medically he's a regular, healthy toddler. Nothing else matters." And it's true. There are other things that have gone well this year, and things that have gone badly, but that is really the one thing that outshines it all.

Last night I did not sleep well.

Woke up cold also. I've been nothing but hot for so long that that feels very strange.

Yesterday I cleared off the small table on the dining porch. I made the counter of doom better, but not done, and I made a little progress on the room where Birdy will sleep.

I also washed all the laundry and put the lights and the sheet (tree skirt) on the tree. If you remember Linus's blanket wrapped around Charlie brown's tree- that is the style of my "tree skirt" except it is a red sheet from the thrift store. I made the counter better, but not done.

I have to finish all the clean up this weekend. We have plans for Sunday afternoon and friends coming for dinner on Monday. I teach Wednesday and Friday, and then we leave for my in-laws and when we come back, Birdy arrives.( with his parents)

Bean wants to help me put the ornaments on the tree Monday when he is here. That will be the latest I have ever decorated the tree, but it will be fine - I have so much else to do!

Today I need to get to school early to meet Bean because his daddy needs to drop him off early. After school I need to return Birdy's gift (and find an alternative?)

Tomorrow is my last day of class and the studio Christmas party. The kids need me to watch the boys in the afternoon, so Dd is providing my potluck dish and I am taking the boys to the park/library/decorated big box store? depending on weather and then to the studio where she will meet us for the party. Friday I teach again.

Dh has to travel for work today (he found out yesterday afternoon, so it was good that I did the laundry!) and won't be back until Friday night.

Ok, I have to get moving!

good evening! the temperature has risen just enough to add dampness to the air, so i feel colder even though it is warmer.

Lila, I am imagining a woman on a couch brave enough to tackle all of that! who is a creative cook, pulls it together to make presentations in front of large groups, is succeeding on a economic fast, who constantly cares for other people and creatures. Admirable.

SubC - it sounds like - it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! You've planned so much for your holiday, even with setbacks and things still in coming. So nice.

I feel a "little" stymied on progress. Visits to the vet, I've started a series of allergy shots, an unexpected and welcome visit with a relative who lives far away, preparation for a holiday event next week - all have delayed making any progress on cleaning, sorting, donating, excising... but trying to keep on keeping on. December! There is a little space on my counter of doom, but the sink is a vortex of dishes waiting for tomorrow morning.

Good job on the counter of doom, SubC. How ya doing messi?

Imagine me sitting on the couch surrounded by work papers and dog hair, trying to work from home on a laptop that is breaking down with lines jumping across the screen, with the tv on to try and drown out the constant screaming and crying of babies, eating stuff I am sick of, taking dozens of calls, texts and emails while trying to keep my dog from barking and jumping constantly at the new foster dog in her crate, while trying to roast garlic without burning it and wondering how I am going to manage over the next few weeks, with stains on my clothes and my hair all sticking up with my eyes glazed over.

ahhhhhhhhhhhh

Good morning.

I had kind of a challenging day with the boys yesterday. Buddy was fussy and into everything, and Bean had too much energy, but it was both muddy and freezing outside. Also, the plans got changed around late Sunday night so that I needed to pick them up, which was not optimal. Usually dsil brings them to me so I can get ready for them in the morning.

Last night Dh and I rearranged the great room to set up the Christmas tree. It is not the way we usually do it and feels very disruptive to me. I actually like it, but I feel off kilter because it is too different.

One positive result (besides vacuuming under furniture that rarely gets moved) is that I am feeling inspired to attack the house like a whirlwind today to regain a sense of control.

The last child present I was waiting for arrived yesterday, but unfortunately it is absolute junk. It's a hot wheels case for Birdy, and the car slots are weird angles and most of the cars don't fit unless you put them loose in the oversized slots- of which there are too few. The latches are lightweight plastic and would be broken in days. So I will be returning it (in store, to Target) and trying to find an alternative.

We are also getting Bean a bike we do not have yet (used, Craigslist) but Dh is in charge of that. And I ordered books for ddil that have shipped but not arrived yet.

The counter of doom is buried again, but hopefully not for long.

I miss everybody and wonder what you are up to.

Good evening.

I did not get to go to the Messiah because Dh developed a cold with a nasty cough. And I am not going 8nformation the city at night alone!

But. I did, drumroll please - clear off the counter of doom!
And the tree is in the stand and I found one more thing to get rid of.

I also emptied one vegetable crisper drawer and the top shelf of my fridge. I did give the chickens about a quart of spoiled food. Mostly things only Dh eats that got pushed to the back in small amounts.

I am eating canned soup because I am lazy and Dh has no appetite and wanted canned soup.

We will have a quiet evening in.

Slow start this morning.

Messi, I'm glad you had a good thanksgiving! I think the light affects a lot of us. I also struggle with SAD.

I think tracking your spending can also help you see where you are bringing things into your house that you don't need and help you focus on what is there. Be careful not to let it get you into a scarcity mindset that will make you hoard more in fear of future spending though.

I found three more cars for Birdy - duplicates, so I know they belong to his daddy. Current inventory of cars remaining in this house - 207. Plus I'm sure some random ones scattered about. I had a case of 24 when I was a kid, and it was plenty! My brother had at least twice that and we played together.

Dh and I are going to get our tree this morning. I have a friend coming at 1:00 to do some pottery and Dh and I are going out to hear the Messiah tonight.

Bean's parents suddenly(?) decided to take the boys to a winter event I used to love to take the kids to when they were small and invited me along, but it is a long drive from here and since I already had plans and have too much to do, I told them to pencil me in for next year if Bean likes it. Buddy will be big enough to really get into it next year.

Enough sitting around!

15 more days til the daylight begin to lengthen. (-:

Hello, hello. Brr brr brr. It is chilly here in the midwest.
SubC - I'm so sorry about your migraine. I hope this next day is free from it. Nice that you got enough relief to sort cars. Quite the collection. I think Birdy will be pleased.
It sounds like it was a lovely Thanksgiving. Glad you made it back before snow. I had a good Thanksgiving. I helped serve the meal at a shelter on T-day and celebrated with family on Saturday at my brother's house. Both lovely events.
Then snow came. It was lovely, but the next day I just got slow. SAD maybe catching up with me. I feel very behind, like I'm standing still or going backward. This month is so full of events, it's hard find time to stay afloat. Then, I think of you all, also working on things and I hope to follow suit. This month, thinking of Lila, I plan to track my spending - ON PAPER!
I am crashing. more later...

Good morning.

It's very quiet here.

Yesterday we had a high of 29 degrees. I woke up with a really bad migraine and skipped my class. Which I am a little sad about. The meds didn't work fully until I had taken multiple doses. I mostly puttered around the house barely doing anything until after lunch time when I finally felt better. By which time I was pretty exhausted from being in pain.

I did make it to my eye appointment and order new glasses.

I found two things from a Christmas box that can go and picked out 14 cars from our extensive collection that can go in the new hot wheels case I bought Birdy for Christmas. His Mommy just gave him her cars, but her case is falling apart. The new case holds 100 cars. She has 50. I'm pretty sure the ones I picked out were ds's. There are over 200 cars at my house. Mine, a few of dh's and three kids. They came in cereal boxes for a while. Bean only plays with a small basket of them. I want Birdy to have room in his case to choose for himself when he gets bigger and not have to downselect too many. 14 seems like plenty to play with while he is here. Actually too many, but the case will seem empty!

I need to go because I overslept. I hope someone will check in.

How are you handling the holiday run up? Advertising, expectations, the darkness? I hope CM is doing ok.

Good morning!

We are home. We made it back just before the first snowstorm of the year. We have 4 inches. Where my son lives, four inches of snow was nothing (we got nine there on Saturday and some outdoor things opened late or got rescheduled) but here it shuts everything down. I'm sure Tatoulia would be amused.

Dd is home with her family today and Dh is working from home. He will plow our drive later and hopefully the roads will be clear tomorrow for school.

We have a problem with our heat. I thought I would be home all day waiting for the technician to come look at it, but now he is not coming, so I will just be home keeping the woodstove going so we aren't spending a fortune on the emergency electric back up.

I will also be getting lesson plans done for tomorrow and Friday, prepping for my class on Thursday, and switching over the decorations in my house to winter/christmas. Possibly purging as I go. My ddil has me very inspired.

Lila, congratulations on making it to December with your no-spend on food!! What an amazing month you created! What creative dishes you made! It is quite the feat you have achieved. Well done!

Good afternoon.

I have been having a really good time with my family.

I even helped ddil and ds sort through their storage area and evaluate all the hand me down toys. It helped me get a much better idea about what to save for or pass on to Birdy.

Lila, I am really proud of you!

I have been ordering things for Christmas and throwing in a couple of add-ons for me to make up free shipping because they end up costing nothing or a few dollars more than shipping. I am trying to make good choices though.

I am feeling inspired to go back and work on my house more.

Success of the day:
I have been looking at blankets and bedspreads and comforters online since Black Friday sales came on because I have been cold at night.

Today, I decided to just wash the one I have tossed in the guest room and use it. I had it on my bed for awhile, don't like it that much so almost donated it, but put it on the guest bed, and then a guests slept with it.

Now it is washed and on my bed, cost me nothing, looks kinda nice even, and I think I should be warm tonight.

Happy Thanksgiving weekend!

I am doing great, enjoying the time off. I am still using up the food I have and not buying any food. We had our Thanksgiving dinner. My ddil made a turkey, rolls, and potatoes. I made green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and corn casserole, all from foods I had in my freezer and canned. Son brought pie. Everything was yummy.

Yesterday I raided my pantry and freezer again and found some frozen hash browns which I had this morning with an egg and plant sausage. I found some other frozen stuff I brought up.

I have to admit I am getting sick of it, finally. It has not been hard, and has been kind of a fun challenge, but I am starting to feel "over it." I am determined to make it to Dec 1 before buying any food, but I was also encouraged to make it to 40 days, so we will see if I decide to do that or go shopping. I miss simple things like creamer for my coffee, better cheese and crackers, bakery bread...I dunno what else, probably chocolate and cookies but ugh. I don't really need anything. I want pudding tho. And fruit.

I need to declutter and stuff.

Good morning!

Aww, thanks Messi.

Happy buy nothing day!

I'm drinking coffee in the hotel waiting for Dh to wake up.

I've been sleeping ok. Still waking up in the night, but going back to sleep and getting up later with no chores or tasks on my plate.

The boys have been wearing me out daily though.

Ironically I pulled something in my hip leaning over the chair to turn on a light in the hotel room last night.

Today we are planning a trip to the children's museum.

There is supposed to be a lot of snow here tomorrow and Sunday but hopefully the roads will be clear when we drive home on Monday.

I am eating too much.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!

I am so grateful for your lives and for your willingness to share.

Hoping this day and all days to follow are filled with happiness, love and appreciation.

SubC, I hope you have caught up on your sleep.

hi, messi!

I am enjoying my work from home day, which I did very little work, and I then get 3 days off in a row! So happy! I ran errands today and enjoyed time at home.

I made a half recipe of baked oatmeal this morning from the one and a half bananas my son bought that are so over ripe no one wanted them, plus oats, almond milk, sugar, an egg, cinnamon, and walnuts. It is sooo good. It is enough for probably 3 or 4 breakfasts.

I also got out a can of artichoke hearts and some frozen spinach, mixed in a little parmesan and mozzarella, garlic, pepper, light mayo, and baked it. I had some stale tortilla chips but baked them on a cookie sheet at 350 for 5 minutes and they taste like fresh now. That was my dinner.

I have not even bought anything for Thanksgiving. My kids are bringing and making things. I have ingredients for corn casserole, homemade cranberry sauce, and green bean casserole so I am making those.

I hope you guys have a happy thanksgiving!

I woke up at 4 this morning scorching hot and couldn't go back to sleep. I have far too many things to do today. Unfortunately most of them make noise and will annoy my Dh.

It is still dark so I can't do the outside things. Even if I go in the barn and turn the lights on - the roisters will sing and annoy Dh.

I started a load of wash.

The sale is in the city at the studio where 8 take classes.

I think it went well. I don't have time to take inventory before I leave, but I sold a few of the new things I have been playing with and like and got positive feedback.

Today I bought a little cup, a necklace, and a pair of earrings. The woman who made the necklace gave me some glaze tips I want to try out.

SubC - good luck with today's sale! Where does your sale take place? Close to home? In town? anyway, hope today is terrific.

Saturday night.

Messi - good job on the ice cream.

Lila, good job on the room and housework, and super good job on the food! I am SO proud of you for breaking your fast food habit!

Are you going to wash the inside of the fridge when it is empty? Do you have a separate freezer, or just the one attached to the fridge?

My fridge is getting a lot emptier. I haven't grocery shopped since my big stock up and we leave on Tuesday. I think we will make it. We will take a few things with us to share, and when we get home it will be December and we will not be out of food. Dh did buy a bottle of wine and some bread because I haven't had time to bake. I would love to draw down the perishables as much as possible before holiday baking and cooking the big family meals.

The first day of my big sale for the year was today. I think it went ok. I don't think it is on track to be as good as last year, but I sold a couple of things toward the higher end of my range and who knows how tomorrow will go. I also bought 5 things. One is a gift for my mom, but three are mugs and one is a piece of art. Dh said it was ok. He likes the mugs, but says we have to clear out some of the less good mugs. I will try.

I did take a clearance bin of pots that I wasn't excited about for various reasons - flaws in the glaze or slight warping, or whatever - basically seconds. I marked them $5-10 and stuck a box at an angle under my table with an arrow pointing to "bargain basement" and sold 8 out of 12! I might add a few more tomorrow.

I also broke a little bowl during set up, so that is another one out.

I'm pretty tired. Another day of sale tomorrow, boys on Monday, and I don't know how I'm going to get ready for our trip!

hi again, Saturday now.

It is interesting seeing the fridge get emptied with my no spend on food month.

All that is in there now is
- apples, 1 old-ish lemon
- one red onion, 2 small shallots
- a jar of applesauce, a few fruit cups
- leftover cooked squash, freezer corn for tonight, a bit of lettuce and pomegranate
- pickles, olives, various sauces
- small pieces of various cheese, butter
- a few eggs, half a carton of almond milk

Usually there is easily 10x that much food in there.

I still have plenty in the freezer and pantry.

hi friends! So nice to read and catch up on your progress!

I had one more event and one more class this week, worked super long hours and have not had 2 days off in a row for weeks, but I got off early on Thurs and have today and tomorrow off. I slept for at least 10 hours last night! I really needed it and I feel better.

Today I worked on my room just a little bit, took out some trash and boxes, and put one thing in the donate box.

I also washed dishes and have my sheets in the dryer and clothes in the washer.

I am still doing great 100% on not buying any food in November. The fridge is the emptiest I have ever seen it! The freezers still have plenty and so do the cabinets. Yesterday I baked a butternut squash someone gave me a couple weeks ago, with garlic and some sage from the freezer. Had some of that today too and probably will make soup out of the rest of it.

I also soaked and tore up all the rest of the lettuce and peeled a pomegranate that looked bad on the outside but was perfect on the inside. I have had it a long time. So I have a container of fresh lettuce and a container of pomegranate arils all ready for my salad tonight.

I am not feeling deprived (a friend gave me some chocolates she made the other day, which was so good!) and just have to think about what to eat rather than going to buy everything I crave.

My pastor told me this is a sort of fast, and to think about doing it for 40 days and then taking a break, and if I want, starting again later. So I may do that. I have only told him and one close friend that I am doing this, since I don't want people knowing and bringing me food for that reason. Any food anyone gives me is spontaneous and part of my reliance of God as my provider, which He does sometimes through other people.

good morning!

Nice job cleaning the refrigerator, SubC! Lol.
You inspired me and so I finished the pint of ice cream in my freezer(-: - but this was after cleaning out the rest of the refrigerator and preparing a compost drop-off. so thanks for inspo!

have great days!

Good afternoon!

I am working on cleaning out my fridge by eating the last piece of cake. It is "healthy" cake - whole almond meal, eggs, applesauce, cocoa, vanilla, and hmmm.something else.oh yeah.sugar. MOSTLY healthy cake. No frosting.

I went to my class this morning and I reworked some old pots. One of them turned out really badly so I threw it in the dumpster. Another one was ok, but I wasn't fully happy with it and it cracked - not badly, but if it was refired again the crack would get worse. I was criticizing the pot and commenting on the fact that it cracked, when a classmate said "I don't mind that it's cracked. I really like it." So I gave it to them. Down two pots. (I'll log that in a bit.) I did have other work that came out well.

I also stopped at the offsite craft storage and bought a bunch of stamps. Twelve loose ones and three sets. Is that 15 things? I'm going to call it 15. I might take some to school, but I need to claim them for now.

I picked up the pumpkins at school and got goat feed. I also had to call my bank because apparently someone has been trying to log into my account and it is now locked (good) I need to go change my ID and password in person on Monday.

The heat is on in the studio and the washing machine is running. I'm going to unload the dishwasher in a minute and go out to finish? preparing for my sale once it's warm.

hello! good evening! good morning!
I don't post a lot, but reading your posts really helps me out. I am trying to keep on keeping on but feel like I'm falling behind. Not quite keeping up and not pulling ahead. But, four more square feet of floor empty in the bedroom! The desk gremlins have been back at it, however, so I need to clear space there again.

Lila, I started reading some of the posts on the No Spend chat. You are doing a great job! I had to laugh, though, because as you were describing the few frozen slices of pizza from your freezer, I was munching on a piece of pizza from my freezer. I do need to start keeping track of my budget. I think I need to start logging everything...
You are so creative with your food. I admire all the cooking you do.

SubC - I hope things are going well with getting your sale together. This becomes such a busy time of year. Already I was helping at a holiday program last week. More to come in December, of course. Good luck with the sale.
I appreciated the saying you quoted - "better one good thing that is..." - it's so elegantly expressed and has stuck with me this week. I couldn't find a source for it either, so I will henceforth attribute it to SubC. It is a valuable reflection for all things in life - including thinking of it in relationship to a certain collection of shoes at my house, lol.

I hope you all have great days! more later...

Good morning again!

I have already started dishes and laundry (trying to catch up.) I have my class this morning, then I need to stop by school to collect some pumpkins that are being "thrown out" - free food for me and the chickens.

The rest of the day will be focused on preparing for my sale and our thanksgiving trip, including restocking the goat feed.

Good morning.

Lila, I think you are doing a lot.

I have big plans for today - we'll see how it goes. It's supposed to rain all day, so that will either help me focus on the inside stuff I need to do, or wear me down.. We'll see..

Bean did color his bag yesterday and was very happy with it. Also, he took it home.

Dh has been showing some appreciation for my clean out progress lately, but he has also been inspired to do a big cleanout of his home office space, which is kind of overwhelming me with stuff that has to go various places.

Ok, off I go - my kitchen is a wreck. Maybe I will start there.

post 2 today -

I roasted some squash and the seeds, made a small cake out of leftover ricotta.

Washed dishes, ran dishwasher, unloaded.

Picked up my room a bit more, put some of the flour into the flour containers and the rest in a cabinet.

Have not done a whole lot else. It is almost 7pm so maybe I can work on my room a little more.

SubC, you ARE making good progress, so don't despair! Be encouraged and keep posting to encourage us! I do hate it when I want to do something with the grandkids and can't find it... they grow up too fast to put things off for long.

messi, I am so sorry about your aunt. That is difficult. I hope your doggy is giving you extra love and comfort.

My dog who I adopted a few months ago is a real cuddly comfort to me. I would like to get a second dog, but now is not the time.

I have finished my biggest work event of the year and now only have... like 3 more events and 3 more classes and then I get a break til mid January. Still will be working and preparing, but nice to have a little breathing room.

Today I felt exhausted and headachey so took the day off. I am trying to do some decluttering.

I worked on my desk in my room for 15 minutes and put 4 items on the Daily Tally thread. Yay me! I will work on my room some more today.

I found some teas, snacks, and a bag of flour and brought them out to the kitchen. (A bag of flour in your room? you ask. Yes. A huge bag. Why. Because months ago when people were coming over I threw everything off the counters into my room. Sheesh).

There are a lot of things I can't find. So I am starting with my room. Will post more later!

Thanks Messi.

I do not feel like I am making much progress, and I have no idea how I am going to get this done in time. But I am not giving in to despair.

I was walking out to fire the kiln this morning, and I remembered a line I read somewhere - I tried to google it for source, but it wouldn't come up. Maybe my brain has paraphrased it too much. It is "better one good thing that is, than two that were, or three that will never be."

I have saved so many toys and materials for projects and mementos for scrap books. Things that were, things that perhaps will never be.. It is foolish to let them interfere with the joys that are available to me right now. My Birdy needs a place to sleep. There are three days with Birdy, at Christmastime, at the age of two! That will never come again.

Also, in June, when Bean and I signed up for the summer reading program, they gave us a tote with a line drawing on it. I told Bean he could color it with my fabric crayons, but I couldn't find them. Yesterday I found the fabric crayons, and this morning I found the tote. It's been 5 months. I wonder if he will care?

You GO, SubC!!

Ok, I found nine more (mostly small) things to let go of. I managed to shift a few boxes, the mats are in place, and the rug is almost dry. I will bring it in tomorrow and give it a good vacuum for any dust that settled.

I have an idea about moving a few things to make a better space for my table cloths, and that might open up room where I want to store games. The shelves where I want to put the table cloths are old, gross, wire. I can't redo the whole closet right now, but I can put a piece of cardboard and a clean old sheet down as a bottom layer.

Good afternoon all,

Hello Messi! I had trouble with that once and I just had to drive to a physical location and sit in someone's office until they fixed it.

Today I started (barely) getting ready for the Christmas visit from the family. All of my beds will be full. I need to clear out the little sleeping porch for Birdy.

I have moved a few things, and I am down one, but the job feels overwhelming. I stopped and power washed six more puzzle mat pieces and another rug to finish off the basement floor. Even though it is cold out and my wet fingertips got numb.

That is how much I want to not have to deal with the stuff. But I need to.

omgoodness. I was going to chat a little but just spent 3 hours on the phone trying to get the login to my bank account straightened out. I've had no problems before, but now they have to send me somwthing by snail mail to straighten it out. Crazy. So now I have to go on to the next thing but will check in later.
Hello hello hello have a good sunday.

Goid morn8ng!

Messi, school was fine on Wednesday. I actually had a challenging student who was absent, and when I went by the office at the end of the day, I commented that "S was absent today - I'm much less tired!" To which she replied "he wasn't absent, I sent him home. (Insert story of infraction) and just so you know, he's on his last chance, so if you send him down, send his stuff with him. He's not coming back." On the one hand, it was nice of her to warn me, because she knows I go to bat for these kids like they are mine, but otoh, now I can't send him down unless I have decided he should be expelled.

I am not getting much done for my sale because my hand hurts, but I had a good class yesterday. I also swam a mile and stopped at a couple of thrift shops. I'm looking for stocking stuffers, but I ended up buying a stand for my sale display. It's really nice and Dh says I should keep a piece on it at home. I google imaged it and apparently it's meant for a ukulele. It cost me 53 cents.

Dh invited me to go out to dinner last night and I accepted, so that was my day. We had a good conversation. I'm going to try harder to get him to eat without checking his phone at home.

More school today and maybe a little clay work. Tomorrow is absolutely positively the last day that I can make anything new and finish it in time for the sale. Dh told me to stop worrying about the sale and take care of my hand. He reminded me that the pottery is supposed to be fun, and that we entered our "can afford to retire" window last Nov 1. (But not our "can afford health care" window, so Dh needs to work until at least the end of 2026 so that he can stay on the company plan until he qualifies for Medicare.) I'm not sure what we're going to do about me in the gap because I am younger than he is. Hopefully he won't need to work an extra two years for me.

Anyway, I resisted a lot of interesting things at the thrift shop - a giant marble run for only $4 - "subc, you have a marble run." "But this is compatible! Think of how big a run the kids could make!" "Bean isn't very interested in the marble run. The other boys are toddlers. Think of how much space it takes up! Think of how excited you would have been to find this when your kids were really into the marble run and your Christmas budget was $100! Leave it for that mom!" A texture mat for pottery that I already have - "I could take this one to school." "You could take yours to school and share it.". Dress boots "don't NEED these and they have a scuff." A skirt I already have - "but I love this skirt! What if it wears out?" "Then you will find a different skirt." Etc.

I also got overwhelmed by the amount of absolute JUNK that exists in the world. So many low quality plastic toys. So much low quality plastic clothing, so many cheaply made Knick knacks. I don't know if the thrift stores are worse than when my kids were little because of things like eBay and Marketplace, or if it's because the quality of new stuff has fallen so much, or if I just see things differently now that I've cleared out so much.

Anyway, I hope everybody has a good Friday!

good morning. trying to keep on keeping on. there is a clear space on the desk, but many things are lobbying to fill it. I need to turn a "deft" ear and come up with relocation plans. My dog is lobbying for my ear with a little whine to go for a walk. We will leave in a few minutes.
My aunt passed away this week, so I am sad. She was in her nineties and lived four hours away. My cousin is coming into town this morning to make arrangements at the cemetery here, the hometown. I will meet him there before going to work.
SubC - i hope you had a good teaching day and that you get to do more work for your sale.
Lila - thinking of you and hoping to get to cleaning my refrigerator a little.
Ok, my dog is insisting. Have great days!

Good morning.

I guess it's "later"

Beds made. Laundry done and put away except the load that is hanging to dry.

Counter better but not done.

Bins put away.

Planning started

I got a few small pieces made for the sale on the 22 and 23 (I am really pushing it on time!) and aggravated my tendonitis. I bisqued two things I had finished to fire for my class tomorrow.

Dh was off and working on jobs around the house. We took a trip together to a shopping center where he could get paint for the bathroom ceiling and I could use a coupon to get bean a toy he wants for Christmas.

This morning I need to get everything together for school and then I teach. I'm not sure if I'm going to swim after school or try to do more work for the sale.

Good morning!

I have one more bin of Halloween stuff to carry downstairs. I got out the thanksgiving and generic fall decorations. There are a couple of things I might get rid of.

I did laundry yesterday, but did not get it all put away. I have two more loads to do, and I need to remake the company beds with the clean sheets.

I did finish cleaning up the playroom.

I did a little bit of the counter, but not a lot.

This morning I started my planning. In the process I looked in my filing cabinet, and I found a file folder which included a bunch of information for lessons I am not going to teach again - so most of that file is in the recycling (I saved some stuff I might do at home with the boys)

I will report on progress later.

I worked in the basement.
I got the thing moved.

Three more things and two pots out plus some small trash and recycling.

Heading over to the tally thread.

Good afternoon!

Hi Messi! What subject(s) do you tutor?

I have not cleaned up the Halloween decorations yet because I realized I can't get to the bins because I put a thing on them. In keeping with the "everything that does not have a place must go on the left side of the basement" plan, the thing has to move there (or leave, but I can't choose leave. So I have been trying to clear a space for it. So far I have found ten small things to get rid of (four were Halloween decorations I didn't use this year). A couple of items have been relocated to an appropriate place, and others have just been stuffed in other locations on that side of the basement where they will be a problem for another day. Thinking about what Dd just went through has motivated me a little, but clearly not enough.

Also this morning I have run two loads of laundry and made myself an eye appointment - not exactly a rock star level of accomplishment. One foot in front of the other...

Good morning! a quick note. I am having trouble getting to posting, but you all have been busy! and the season marches on. I was surprised by the snow yesterday and it slowed things down. I was hoping for a little more clear weather for outside and weatherizing work.

SubC - i was sorry your Dd had house issues and glad that you were able to harbor them. It's great that everyone pitched in and you even managed some organizing! I hope Buddy is feeling better. I hope today's tasks go well.

Lila - Great work with the refrigerator. I hope to do some of that today. I'll be taking encouragement from your cleaning work and your creativity with food. I feel for you missing your dog. They are such loving additions to our lives.

It's Monday my day off so I of course plan too much to do, but lots of phone calls, some tutoring with a friend's granddaughter, I am starting with laundry and dog walking. Have great days!

Good morning.

My Dd is a force of nature and the kids went back to their house last night. They were able to turn the heat back on just in time because it froze last night and we have snow.

Unfortunately buddy came down with the stomach flu Saturday night.

Yesterday Dd went back to their house to finish making it habitable (they had a drywall guy and professional cleaners Saturday) it was cold and rainy all day. Dsil took care of buddy who couldn't keep food down or sleep- multiple baths and loads of laundry required, Dh cleaned the house! And made dinner! And I got the best job and spent my day in the basement playroom isolating with Bean!

We played puppets and felt board and Lego. His puppet story was the owl puppets had a nest and the nest blew out of the tree and the grandparent owls were babysitting while the parent owls made a new nest for the baby owls.

I sorted through an entire large Lego big - putting the basic bricks, wheels, and people into smaller containers so that hopefully the boys will be able to find parts to build the things they want to make. I also made a house on command and Bean built a truck with a trailer and a whole back story about the fire and rescue guy who lived in the house near the beach. Multiple structures were created, caught fire, put out, leveled and rebuilt. People were rescued from burning boats by helicopter, and at one point there was a forest fire (I made a tray of trees too.)

I found a few felt pieces that need to be thrown out, and a few plastic toys that are not Lego mixed in. Today I do not have the boys. My plan is to put away all the Halloween stuff and laundry, finish cleaning up the playroom (Bean was whisked home by surprise right after dinner),sketch out the rest of my year, do a general plan for the rest of November, and really get everything together for this week. I also need to clean off the counter of doom again. Dh put a lot of things there when he cleaned.

Yesterday really felt like a break and I feel energized!

Good morning!

Lila, I am sorry about your dog. So many hard pet experiences this year!

Good job on the freezer though! And on your house catching up. Your salad sounds yummy!

My house is a disaster. Buddy's family lives in a house where the garage is under the living room. This makes the living room very cold. On Thursday they had sprayed in insulation put in the ceiling of the garage. Somehow the installers managed to spray the insulation into their air return and the insulation got blown all over their house. It is fine and dusty and treated with flame retardant, so the kids could not be in the house at all and the grown ups need to take precautions, so they have all moved in with us. Dsil went back yesterday to wash some things and retrieve them. I took bean to school with me and Dd dropped buddy with a friend for the day.

Fortunately, the company agreed to cover all of the clean up costs (duct cleaning, furnace inspection, and professional cleaners) but they will be with us until it is done. Guess it's good that I stocked up on food!

Yesterday was the cross quarter, so we are now in the last part of the Solar year. 43 days to solstice with a focus on family, home, reflection, and gratitude. I didn't have five minutes to sit and think or plan yesterday, but I've got plenty of family!

Today bean is going to a work project at church with dsil and buddy has a play date. I need to go to the feed store, catch up on laundry, and make pigs for my holiday sale. Dh and I have a concert tonight, so the kids are on their own.

post 2 -

I got my laundry in. I was looking for a recipe to use my beets in a salad and it called for feta. I have a vague memory of freezing some cheese awhile ago so I decided to look.

The top shelf has been sorted before, but the bottom has been a year. I pulled everything out and found a LOT of leftovers that are still good that I forgot about: homemade tomato soup, a few slices of cranberry bread, half a bag of rhodes rolls. I did throw out a few things that were too old.

I have the rolls thawing so I can bake them tonight.
I reheated the corn fritters in the toaster oven, ate two, and decided they were too freezer burned to enjoy. Tossed them.
I put the soup in the fridge to thaw for lunches.

Then I found a raw beef bone in a baggie way in the back. With my dogs, I used to buy them, give them one frozen, and then it starts to get smaller I would re-freeze them in the bag to give another time. There were two, partially chewed bones in the back. There was soe hair stuck to them. It from from the beloved dog who passed away this spring.

It really hurt my heart. I started looking at the leftovers and thinking, the freezer is a time capsule. I remember cooking this, and that. I remember buying this. I have memories of processing the fruit last summer. All of that.

So, I am feeling a bit melancholy. When I put those bones in there, I never could have imagined that when I got them back out, he would be dead. He was only 4.

Hello!

messi, how scary about the fire!!! That would shake me too. How are you doing today?

SubC, your excavating is a good idea! I may try that on some areas, like the medicine cabinet. The mini trampoline will be good! The kids will enjoy it, and rebounding is very good for your health. Even a few minutes a day.

hi Tatoulia!

I worked a few ten hour days this week and got really wiped out! But today I have off, and am well rested, sleeping better, getting stuff done around the house. I have to work tomorrow.

So far I:
- took out the kitchen and bathroom trash
- sorted out one cucumber that was molding and some junk mail and took those out
- got out the leaf lettuce and soaked/washed it.
- washed the beets and they are in a pot boiling
- loaded the dishwasher
- went outside in the nice sunshine and picked up branches in the front yard and put them in the green bin

I also read for awhile and am relaxing. I am slightly annoyed that I took my laundry down to start it and Totsfam has loads started in the washer and dryer. They know my days to do wash are ALWAYS Friday and then if needed Saturday. I have asked them to do their wash on any other day of the week, or after I do my two loads Friday morning. Well, I need to give them grace because they have a new baby and they are trying to clean up downstairs. I am about to go down and see if I can get my wash started.

I will be enjoying a beet, pomegranate, leaf lettuce salad and probably adding some nuts and maybe half an orange.

I also plan to work on my bedroom and my supplements/meds today.

See ya later!

Good morning!

Messi, that is very scary. I'm glad the people were ok. Was the home badly damaged? It sounds like it. I hope they have somewhere to go.

Good job taking things to goodwill! And it sounds like you are making progress on fixing up your home.

I took the loom and yarn yesterday. Full day teaching, loaded the kiln, prepped some pots for today's class, and had dinner with dd1, heartdaughter, and her wife. It was fun, but it was a long day!

Today I have my class, then I am going swimming and doing the big grocery shop. No thrifting for me today. I still have not finished the ornaments I need to make for my sale in just over two weeks, and anything not drying by Sunday will not be ready. Sunday is pushing it. So hopefully I will find some motivation when I get home with the groceries!

Ay yi yi yi yi! It is late again.

Hello everyone. I was going to message last night, late again, let the dog out, went to let the dog back in and found the house across my small street was on fire. Very frightening. 7 fire trucks and numerous other safety vehicles. The woman and her two small children who live in the upstairs of the burning house made it out, the lower tenant was not home. He came back home from work at 2:30 am to find his home burned. Fire and safety personnel did not leave til after 3:00 am. I didn't go to bed til 4:00 am. This event has really shaken me today. I managed to go to work, walked dogs and got to the store but nothing else. I am whupped.

Monday I did manage to get glass in the window, mowed the lawn, worked on a downspout, did some laundry, took a bag and box to goodwill and dropped a humidifier off to a friend. Yay for a beautiful off-work day!

I decided to delay the big grocery shop until Thursday because the regular specials switch on Wednesdays and I don't need any more of those. The stock up deals are good until the 11th.

I dropped off a package, dropped my trash, went to my doctors appointment, finally finished the last steps in my sign up at the fitness center, and swam half a mile. Then I decided I deserved a reward and went to the giant thrift store near the fitness center.

I am now the happy owner of a mini trampoline, three smock shirts for school (three in, one out) a door hook and a shelf divider (I know exactly where both are going) and a gift for Buddy I think he will love. It's a quacking push duck. All told $21.28 after tax. One of the shirts was $3.79, but I really liked it. The trampoline was 7.50.

Voted on the way home and have now had a nice long break and need to get off my bum.