Well, turns out the ac was a very temporary fix.  I have to call a shop later and make an appointment to fix the underlying problem.  I got very hot dropping off recycling and donations yesterday, but I can add another bin to my tally.

i wasn’t able to part with all of the unwanted baby clothes, but I took the easiest ones before I changed my mind.

my grandsons are coming again today - we’re going to make ice cream.  I actually cooked the custard base last night.

little by little….    I miss CM.

And then instead I spent the day in the hot, humid home studio and I am sweaty and dehydrated and have a headache.

dh was working out there on cars and wanted company - upside, my car’s air conditioning works again.

I sorted out a huge stack of cardboard into “garden” and “recycling” and processed a bucket of reclaim clay - wedged the stuff that was on the drying board, poured out the mixer onto the drying board, and refilled the mixer to soak - so each of the basic steps it takes to process a batch. (I also have to run the mixer periodically after it soaks until the batch is the right consistency.).   I put a little bit of the garden cardboard out on the garden, but then it started raining.

and I collected two plastic grocery bags of trash as I was moving around the studio.

this evening we are going over to Bean’s house for his family birthday party.  Dd just moved it because a conflict came up on his actual birthday.  I need to take a shower and wrap his presents.

Good morning

we had terrible storms in our area yesterday.

they hit right at rush hour.  Fortunately they were not as bad out where I live, but the area where Dd lives had horrible flooding.  She ended up stranded less than a mile from home in an elevated church parking lot.  Fortunately she had the pizza she had picked up to take home for dinner.  The boys got something else with cold pizza for dessert.

the pottery studio I belong to also flooded.  Everything loose in the outdoor firing yard washed into the parking lot and the electrical system was “affected” and required complete inspection before they can reopen.  The all day event planned today that I have been looking forward to was obviously cancelled.  It is hot, humid, and grey here, so I will try to take advantage of the unexpected free time to return to working in the basement.  A top priority is to get those unwanted baby girl clothes out.  It is so hard.

i also would like to hear from more people.  When I started this I had a house where you had to put things on the floor to use a chair.  Now I still have an overcrowded basement and messy zones with piles and some random unsorted boxes and bins, but I was able to prepare for a surprise visit from my son’s family - with a two year old, in less than 2 hours.  I think this will always be a process, but even though I still despair of getting there sometimes, I can imagine a day when I live in a normal house where I can actually find and access everything in only a few minutes.

It's hot here too, SubC. I think next year I will try to take vacation in May instead, so I can be outside more. As it is, I have to get up early to do anything outside. This morning I pulled weeds, trimmed hanging tree branches, watered plants and put the green bin out to the curb, all before 8am.

My house is so much better. I wonder if anyone reads our chatter. If so, please say hi! I would like to encourage people that you can start with a totally hoarded up house and end up a lot better. It took me 3.5 years but it was worth it. Now my living room and dining room are pretty normal looking (not magazine perfect but clean and presentable), kitchen is 90% there and my bedroom varies from 75% to 90%, depending on what I toss in there sometimes... (will fix that habit when TotsFam moves out and I have other spaces for things I am keeping).

I hope you have a good day. 🙂

It’s funny, the day and time are wrong on my posts - I always seem to be posting in the future.

I’ve spent almost my whole day just vacuuming, washing things, and running laundry. I have had to wash and dry bedspreads and blankets two and three times to get most of the dog hair off. I’m tired and feeling grumpy because I have done so much work and hav3 so little to show for it.

I need to go get my pots ready for Saturday - today is the only day I have to work on them and get them fired in time, but somehow I can’t shift gears. Also it’s so hot and humid outside I don’t even want to walk to the barn.

So I drove Birdy and his mama to pick up a rental car this afternoon.

my car AC died on the way, so I stopped twice on the way home to cool off - once at a thrift store and once for iced tea (it was very hot)

I bought some kitchen things for grandkids (kept running out of preferred cups and containers when Birdy was here) and a little art table for the basement.  I’m up ten.

i’ve run a load of dishes and two of laundry.  I have a lot of bedding to wash because of dogs and peanut butter eating boys.

tomorrow I stay home all day by myself.

So I drove Birdy and his mama to pick up a rental car this afternoon.

my car AC died on the way, so I stopped twice on the way home to cool off - once at a thrift store and once for iced tea (it was very hot)

I bought some kitchen things for grandkids (kept running out of preferred cups and containers when Birdy was here) and a little art table for the basement.  I’m up ten.

i’ve run a load of dishes and two of laundry.  I have a lot of bedding to wash because of dogs and peanut butter eating boys.

tomorrow I stay home all day by myself.

Birdy is going home this afternoon.

mixed feelings.  I know ddil will be happy to get back to her life, and he and his daddy miss each other, and I really need to invest some time in my house and projects, but I will miss him!

but - only ten days to family vacation!

Good morning!

Lila, the birthday sounds fun!  I think I would also opt out of the vacation.  Being honest alone is more of a vacation for me!

Yesterday We spent the morning with Ds before he and the dogs drove home.  Then I went to the city studio to do some work and ddil took Birdy to a ballgame and dinner with her family.  He came home very tired.  They are going to go out again this morning and for lunch.  I have planned far too many things to do while they are gone.

Tomorrow I have all three grandsons here all day and we might find out if Birdy can go home.

SubC, it sounds so busy at your house, and so familiar! Dog hair, kids, and too much food for the fridge, lol. I hope you had an awesome holiday with the kids! Your new class parameters sound so much better for you. I really hope you have an enjoyable year!

hi messi! How you doing?

We had a big birthday celebration here. My TotsDad made a cake and ordered Indian food, and two other sons and their wife/girlfriend came, and Tot's cousin who is 6 came. So it was a full, loud, happy house with kids running everywhere laughing. It was great.

I have been cleaning my living room all week and moved all the furniture, vacuumed under it and everywhere, brushed the dogs a few times, dusted most things and used furniture polish, even cleaned the windows. Then I had to stash and dash when everyone was coming for dinner, but it was quick and Wow, it looks like no hoarder house in the main living areas! DDIL brought me gorgeous flowers, so they are on the table and it is very peaceful (everyone went out for the day).

Next week TotsFam is all going on vacation. I was invited but decided it would be better for me to stay home (alone! in the silence! with the dogs!) so I am looking forward to doing whatever I want, taking naps if I want, reading, being at peace. It is great. (I am still on vacation from work).

I have kept up the daily tally as well. Hope to get some mroe done!

Catch you later. I wonder how Road and her son are.

Good morning!

Ds is flying back today (he bought a round trip ticket) but he is not taking his family h9me tomorrow, only his dogs.  The water situation is still uncertain.  Hopefully the second test will come back safe and ddil and Birdy will fly home midweek.  I am enjoying having them here, but ddil really wants her life back.  And Birdy is missing swim classes and other fun summer activities he was signed up for.

ds has been trying to make it worthwhile by focusing all of his extra time on projects around the house he hasn’t been able to get  to.  He sent her a picture of the finally completed stairway two days ago.  It has been functional but not cosmetically finished for over two years.

i no longer remember what I planned to do with my July.  I’ve pretty much just been hanging out with Birdy and trying (with mixed success) to do yoga every day and work on pottery during nap.  House is still falling behind, but not too fast.

ddil is planning to take Birdy to meet some of her family for an activity tomorrow afternoon and I am going to the city studio to work on pieces for an all day club event next Saturday.  Then on Monday she and Birdy are spending most of the day with them.

ds is taking home a few more small things from my house (I think)

Good morning!

Lila, I have been trying to not be gone, but frequently the post button doesn’t work.  When it persists, I email Cory.  I have learned to copy my post before I try to submit it.

i woke up with a migraine this morning and have done nothing but take medicine and sip coffee.  It is a bit better, but I think I will go take more meds - I start with a half dose because that is usually enough.

yesterday we had a very busy day with  Buddy and Birdy, and Birdy and his mom are still asleep.  The house is a wreck!

today we are just staying home with Birdy, so I will try to clean it up a little.  So far we think daddy is flying back on Saturday and taking everyone home on Sunday.  But it will depend on the water test.

SubC! messi! Yay! So glad you are back. I am just so excited I had to post. I will read and catch up and hope to share more!

Good evening!

post from this morning:

ds flew home yesterday to work all week - water won’t be approved until at least Thursday and a friend offered him the use of his apartment.  Ddil, Birdy, and the dogs are staying here and he will fly back to get them on Saturday.

dd has been out with her boys for part of every day and made dinner twice.

i am falling behind on laundry, the counter, and dishes, but very slowly, and somehow, the more meals everyone eats here, the more full my refrigerator gets.  There is absolutely no more room.  Today’s menu is “leftovers”.  We are managing to do a little vacuuming, but the house is covered in dog hair and will need a serious cleaning when everyone leaves.  Lila - it is much harder with kids here!

today no one is coming over.  Dh is working from home, ddil is going to go out and run an errand, and i will have a quiet day with just Birdy at home.

ddil and I FaceTimed dd2 and sorted through the four bins of saved girl clothes.  Apparently tastes have changed, buttons are dangerous, and thrift stores are abundant.  Ddil is taking one grocery bag of clothes (to be fair she already has a lot of unisex clothes - “unisex” being a broad category since Birdy’s favorite color is pink). Dd2 has one bin to be saved in case she has a girl, and the rest can go.  I will deal with the “go” ones later.  I stacked them in a corner of the basement.

having all the boys here is helping a little to focus me differently on what needs to be in my spaces and how they are used.  Not that I have time to adjust anything!  Next summer there will be five grandchildren!  Two will be crawling!

Sorry about the frustration everyone. The old site was no longer able able to be sustained so we had to move it to a new site and re-create everything. That’s the reason the website completely changed if you notice any other issues, please continue to email me so we can make it perfect

Testing the reply functionality

test 2

this is the post I tried to post yesterday, but the button wasn’t working.

Good morning.

i am wondering if the new board with email required drove Messi away.

Lila are you still here?

I am making slow progress on my house.  The great room is under control and the scullery is still good, although it has only been a few days.  I am trying to focus on completing jobs/cleaning up after myself, and then also making things better for 20 minutes.  And I have restarted yoga again again.

Yesterday I confirmed my teaching schedule for the year with my administration.  One of my classes got cancelled, leaving me with only one class on Tu/th.  That is two hours of driving for an hour and a half of teaching.  So I negotiated.  The description for that class has been changed and I will not have to do the dreaded evaluations!  Also, I will not have to do assignments and lesson plans (but I will have to do prep).  The class will be student driven and I get to spend my time just working with the kids on the projects they want to do.  I will provide ideas and examples and get their materials ready.  No “what are we going to do this week?  Have you finished your…” just “Where are you on your projects?  Ok, next week I’ll show you how to do the handle, bring you a couple of examples of possible surface texture, and you’ll be glazing - do you know what color you want?…..”  JOY!  If this goes well it may be the only class I teach from now until I retire.

i thought that I was gong to have to pick bean up after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays, (and Mondays, and most Fridays) but his mom decided that his Wednesday option was not ideal, and got concerned about the days I would be gone when the twins are born, and signed him up for an after school program that looks really good.  So I CAN pick him up, but I don’t have to.  Same with Buddy on Tu/th. (Mondays and Fridays in the fall buddy will be with me all day).  My plan was to get back to swimming after school, then pick bean up.  But now, I can still swim after school, but I also have the option of going to the pottery studio, taking and afternoon class on one of those days, running my errands, or whatever else comes up.  I really need to get back to the swimming.  My body is in nearly as bad shape as my house.

but, at least they are meeting in the middle?  My laundry is clean and put away, except the load currently in the wash and a basket that doesn’t have a full load.  My dishes are all in the running dishwasher, and my scullery counter is clean.  Next challenge - the dining porch. Today I am going to spend most of the day at the downtown pottery studio getting ready for my last raku class.  I may also stop by school to work on my classroom.

new development - my kids in WI had their water shut off yesterday because their well tested positive for E. coli.  Everyone is fine, but they came down here until it is fixed - arriving after midnight last night.  It will be at least until Monday, so I get to spend 4th of July with all of my grandsons!

also - it only took two hours to make the house ok for them and their dogs! (There was some stashing)

Test

Hi anyone who is still here.

i cleared the counter of doom again today.

Test 2

Test 1

testing

hi SubC, just trying to post and see if it goes as the newest post. Trying to figure out how to read here.

Good evening!

Also Lila, it is a lot easier to clean up after just yourself!

Messi, I hope you got to enjoy your morning.

I spent a whole bunch of time in the studio today doing clean and prep work to get ready for camp next week (did I tell you I am GOING to camp?). I signed up for what is basically a four day pottery day camp for adults. I'm excited. They are going to pamper us - the staff does all the hard stuff, like loading wood into the soda kiln to keep it going all night, and we just have to bring our pots and glaze them and go to seminars and do the fun parts of the firing.

Anyway, I have at least nine pots I need to make and get dried and fired by next Thursday, and they need to be different kinds of clay. I mostly use low fire, which is a hazard (think peanut butter or gluten, and the pots made from high fire clay are allergic - they crack or melt if any gets on them) and I never really clean up. So i threw and trimmed my pots for my regular class this week, and then deep cleaned my wheel and my wedging table and my handbuilding table (well, a part of my handbuilding table) and I wedged up some clay to let it rest overnight so I can throw tomorrow. It took most of my day, but it looks so much better!

My house is also still slowly getting better. Some books I ordered did come today - 3, but I decided to throw away a tool that keep failing me in the studio, so I am calling that one out for a net in of 2.

I also called my mom and chatted with her for a bit. She had just been to a funeral for one of my favorite teachers. Which was sad but unfortunately not unexpected. She said at the end of the service they played "the wheels on the bus" and many people looked confused, but mom thought it was perfect. Me too.

and it hard to do all the things on your own.

Thank you messi, I appreciate that so much.

I agree we want to have more time to enjoy life, so maybe part of it IS to enjoy the journey somehow. I will try to be better about that myself.

I am working today and SO TIRED. I need time to work on my health too (meaning, taking time to prep healthier food and exercise).

Good evening!

Lila, I don't know about "normal people" but how often do you think you should do these things?

" dusting
mopping
cleaning the windows
cleaning out the filthy sliding door track
cleaning spatters off the walls from kids
cleaning light fixtures
cleaning 2 bathrooms
pulling weeds
sweeping the porch
cleaning out the car"

These are my goals for those jobs:
dusting - when it looks bad and company is coming - maybe once a month
mopping - in spring - as needed or biweekly if it went that long.
cleaning the windows - every year
cleaning out the filthy sliding door track - also every year (or if the door is sticking)
cleaning spatters off the walls from kids - as needed
cleaning light fixtures - when the bulb burns out and needs changed
cleaning 2 bathrooms - weekly but almost never succeed
pulling weeds - as needed
sweeping the porch - as needed
cleaning out the car - every week (and by "cleaning out" I mean completely unloading, not actual cleaning.)

Those are my GOALS, not my routine.

Talk about you all you want! I like to hear about you.

Messi, I'm glad my 20 minute idea is helping you.

It was helping me, but I have been on full on vacation the last 48 hours. I put my dishes in the dishwasher as soon as I eat and I have been wearing the same shorts and t-shirt for two days (I changed my unders. The closest I came to cooking was steaming some broccoli.

I've spent time in the garden, played with my Legos, read, and enjoyed the near silence and complete absence of people. Unfortunately I've also stayed up way too late because I can't seem to fall asleep when Dh is not there.

I was going to go to the downtown studio today so I could get some stuff fired, but i played with Legos instead of making it. I can do pottery tomorrow and fire it myself for about the same price as gas to go down and back.

Tomorrow I am going to try to be a little more productive, but I love being able to completely ignore the clock and not have to think about anyone else's schedule.

Good morning!

I am in a great mood. I'm feeling semi-productive today, but also, I made a mistake about a week ago that could have cost me $250. I've been waiting to see how it would resolve, and very good news today - $0!

So far today I did chores, exercised, made myself breakfast, remembered to take my vitamins, worked in the scullery, cut back the dead flower heads that were overtaking the front walk (as they fell over) and generally cleaned up after myself. I am going to do a bit more yard work, some pottery, and maybe walk up to the mailbox. I also want to spend a little bit of time planning the rest of the summer.

SubC - Fabulous! Enjoy the day!

It is a beautiful morning; I am trying not to lose it all before going to work. I did get the garbage out, the screen is in place. I will walk dogs and maybe get to something before work.