First thing this morning, I did my newsletter and then headed into town. I dropped the reports off at the office (luckily, didn't see anyone around at the time, so didn't get held up chatting), and then went to get Andrea. We stopped at Waffle House for breakfast, and a quick stop at the grocery store (Duplin has their Christmas Wine out now! Too bad we didn't remember to drink some! LOL!). When we got here, we watched the rest of Rachel Ray, and then got busy. First, the big window was cleaned; and then we "repaired" an air leak in the smaller window. We put up the winter curtains, and then began working on the container plants. We went around and determined all of the places where we could put plants so they would survive the winter inside; and once we had a plan, we brought all but 1 large one inside. (that one doesn't affect the decorating plan and can be brought in later). After a bit of tweaking, we got the plants the way we want them, and they look good.
Next we brought the rest of the linen boxes downstairs, and began the layering process. We picked what runners will go where, which table covers to use, and got the mantle scarf in place. The next step was garland. Andrea worked on getting garland on the mantle and around the mirror, and I sorted through candles and found the ones I want to use (would really like some new ones, but will be frugal this year, since I have --literally-- dozens! LOL!). We also got garland around the 2 doors in the dining room.
I washed a lot of dishes, and baked a pumpkin cake (yummm!!). We ate pumpkin cake and sausage dip, took frequent HGTV breaks (we both like David B), and laughed a lot!
Jimmy was gone most of the day (getting tires changed and then a doctor's appointment). When he got home, we were really tired, so we all went to Wendy's before taking Andrea home.
We are on track with what needs to be done; but I'm concerned about getting finished. Some things are coming up this week that put my schedule in jeopardy, so will have to wait and see how things work out.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Week Eighteen, Day 2, November 2009
I was going to upload some pictures from today, but for some reason they're not loading correctly. I'll try again later.
I had a very busy day, and got a lot of my list done. My friend was not able to come over today, so I'm particularly pleased with how much I got done without help.
All fall and Halloween deco is boxed up and packed away upstairs. All the rest of the decorator stuff (mostly pictures, but a fair amount of other things too) is packed away. Some of it (like the tote of pictures that is too heavy to move, and 3 totes of kitchen things) I found places for without going upstairs. There is a corner of the living room that has a pile of cheese boxes covered by a chenile throw (looks prettier than it sounds! LOL!), and that's a great place to store a lot of the living room stuff (pictures, candle holders, etc.).
I moved several pieces of furniture around ... one piece 3 times! LOL! But, I'm so pleased with the result that some of it will stay this way even after Christmas. I took down the summer curtains in the dining room (living room has no windows; and I can't put the winter curtains up until I have help), and all the various table covers I normally use, and washed them all. They are now neatly packed away until I need them again in January.
In the kitchen, high up on 2 walls, I have shelves for things like a collection of tins, s & p sets, and various other decorative things. I can only reach it with the step ladder, so that doesn't get attention very often. This year I took everything off the shelves but several glass decanters (they're pretty; and also, in the middle of the shelf behind a refrigerator where I can't reach! LOL!) I have a huge collection of Santa's that were Mama's (she no longer has room for them), and I think this will be a good place to display a lot of them.
All of the cleared off surfaces have been wiped down, so I have a clean slate to decorate. I need to vacuum, but have decided maybe I'll just wait a few days. They'll need it after we unpack and repack a few boxes! I finally got all that laundry put up (I have one more basket of towels I did this morning, and will get those put up tonight). Cleaning the bathroom was on my list and I didn't get to it, but will before the week is up.
I washed a lot of dishes today. Seems like every time I turned around there were more dishes to wash ... and there are only the 2 of us! LOL! But, that does include several pieces of silver that needed cleaning. My fingers are wrinkled! LOL!
I'm really tired, so I think I've done all I'm going to get done tonight. Two days down, 7 days to go. :)
I had a very busy day, and got a lot of my list done. My friend was not able to come over today, so I'm particularly pleased with how much I got done without help.
All fall and Halloween deco is boxed up and packed away upstairs. All the rest of the decorator stuff (mostly pictures, but a fair amount of other things too) is packed away. Some of it (like the tote of pictures that is too heavy to move, and 3 totes of kitchen things) I found places for without going upstairs. There is a corner of the living room that has a pile of cheese boxes covered by a chenile throw (looks prettier than it sounds! LOL!), and that's a great place to store a lot of the living room stuff (pictures, candle holders, etc.).
I moved several pieces of furniture around ... one piece 3 times! LOL! But, I'm so pleased with the result that some of it will stay this way even after Christmas. I took down the summer curtains in the dining room (living room has no windows; and I can't put the winter curtains up until I have help), and all the various table covers I normally use, and washed them all. They are now neatly packed away until I need them again in January.
In the kitchen, high up on 2 walls, I have shelves for things like a collection of tins, s & p sets, and various other decorative things. I can only reach it with the step ladder, so that doesn't get attention very often. This year I took everything off the shelves but several glass decanters (they're pretty; and also, in the middle of the shelf behind a refrigerator where I can't reach! LOL!) I have a huge collection of Santa's that were Mama's (she no longer has room for them), and I think this will be a good place to display a lot of them.
All of the cleared off surfaces have been wiped down, so I have a clean slate to decorate. I need to vacuum, but have decided maybe I'll just wait a few days. They'll need it after we unpack and repack a few boxes! I finally got all that laundry put up (I have one more basket of towels I did this morning, and will get those put up tonight). Cleaning the bathroom was on my list and I didn't get to it, but will before the week is up.
I washed a lot of dishes today. Seems like every time I turned around there were more dishes to wash ... and there are only the 2 of us! LOL! But, that does include several pieces of silver that needed cleaning. My fingers are wrinkled! LOL!
I'm really tired, so I think I've done all I'm going to get done tonight. Two days down, 7 days to go. :)
Week Eighteen, Day 1, October 2009
Although I got started on packing up some of the "stuff" I have sitting around (yes, I know, dust collectors .. but I LIKE my "stuff"!!), I didn't get a lot else done. Laundry and dishes of course (although I still have laundry to put up).
We had errands to run. First we went to Dunn, to Wal-Mart. I had a pair of jeans to return, and needed printer ink. Jimmy needed some OTC meds (vitamins, etc.).
Then we picked up my friend and her son, and we went to Michaels (with a stop by Chik-Fil-A, which 3 of us enjoyed and that silly child - age 12 - sulked because it wasn't McD's! LOL!). I could just spend hours in there. Or would if my legs,knees, and feet could stand it. :) Fortunately for my bank account, they can't. Actually, I got very little. I did get some ornaments to paint for an exchange (and have waited until the very last minute; but simply didn't have the funds sooner); and a tiny - 2' - black tree. It was "Halloween" and discounted, so only $3.50. I've been wanting to try one, decorated in silver. Will be quite elegant!
After we took my friend home, I came home and worked on that report I needed to finish. I hope sometime today I can take it by my boss's house (otherwise, will have to run in to the office in the morning).
Hopefully, today will be a much more productive day!
We had errands to run. First we went to Dunn, to Wal-Mart. I had a pair of jeans to return, and needed printer ink. Jimmy needed some OTC meds (vitamins, etc.).
Then we picked up my friend and her son, and we went to Michaels (with a stop by Chik-Fil-A, which 3 of us enjoyed and that silly child - age 12 - sulked because it wasn't McD's! LOL!). I could just spend hours in there. Or would if my legs,knees, and feet could stand it. :) Fortunately for my bank account, they can't. Actually, I got very little. I did get some ornaments to paint for an exchange (and have waited until the very last minute; but simply didn't have the funds sooner); and a tiny - 2' - black tree. It was "Halloween" and discounted, so only $3.50. I've been wanting to try one, decorated in silver. Will be quite elegant!
After we took my friend home, I came home and worked on that report I needed to finish. I hope sometime today I can take it by my boss's house (otherwise, will have to run in to the office in the morning).
Hopefully, today will be a much more productive day!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Week Eighteen October / November 2009
My vacation officially started when I clocked out of work this afternoon. Of course, I'm not counting the work I had to bring home ... just not enough hours in the day to finish the end-of-month reports I need to do. I'm hoping to finish those tonight, and then will be on to my schedule.
This is what I've been working towards all these months. I know I won't stick exactly to my plan, but generally, this is what is lined up:
Saturday: catch up laundry, a few household chores, and some shopping
Sunday: pack up fall decorations, take tubs upstairs; clean the bare surfaces & vacuum, and touch up cleaning; move furniture where needed
Monday: get trees in place (except large tree and stairwell tree); change curtains; get linens (mantle scarf, etc) in place
Tuesday: get container plants inside and in place; begin placing collections; start decorating trees
Wednesday: put covers on sofa & pillows; change wall pictures; bring wrapping supplies down; decide on additional deco and pack up rest; work on trees; decorate stairs
Thursday: finish deco, except trees (work on them in evenings and when I can); give house a once-over with duster & vacuum; catch up laundry; do baking and sewing if time
Friday: go to Winston Salem (to visit parents)
Saturday: visit parents
Sunday: home from W/S; catch up laundry
Monday: back to work.
I will try to post daily how well I do on this schedule!
This is what I've been working towards all these months. I know I won't stick exactly to my plan, but generally, this is what is lined up:
Saturday: catch up laundry, a few household chores, and some shopping
Sunday: pack up fall decorations, take tubs upstairs; clean the bare surfaces & vacuum, and touch up cleaning; move furniture where needed
Monday: get trees in place (except large tree and stairwell tree); change curtains; get linens (mantle scarf, etc) in place
Tuesday: get container plants inside and in place; begin placing collections; start decorating trees
Wednesday: put covers on sofa & pillows; change wall pictures; bring wrapping supplies down; decide on additional deco and pack up rest; work on trees; decorate stairs
Thursday: finish deco, except trees (work on them in evenings and when I can); give house a once-over with duster & vacuum; catch up laundry; do baking and sewing if time
Friday: go to Winston Salem (to visit parents)
Saturday: visit parents
Sunday: home from W/S; catch up laundry
Monday: back to work.
I will try to post daily how well I do on this schedule!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Week Seventeen October 2009
This week was originally scheduled as a "catch up" week. But, since I managed to stay fairly well on schedule, I gave myself (another) playday. My friend and I went to the NC State Fair. I don't think I've been to the Fair for close to 30 years! My family always went when we were kids ... a few rides, a few games, some cotton candy. As a "grown-up" (yes, by some people that's questionable ... but sometimes I have fun! LOL!) I'm not at all interested in the rides or games. Jimmy isn't especially interested in the exhibits (a few, but not all); and in any case, he couldn't last more than an hour, tops, and would have to sit down to wait. And my friend's dad and son are both only interested in the rides, and have no patience for her to go through exhibits. So, we went. We had no one wanting to drag us off this way or that; no one bored with what we wanted to see. We had SO MUCH FUN!!
I picked her up close to 10 am, and we drove to Raleigh (about 45 minutes), and parked the car. We rode a bus to the fairgrounds, and were there by 11:30. We went through every exhibit building ... arts and crafts of every imaginable kind; we saw all the animals (sadly, not allowed to pet any of them); we saw fabulous gardens (and got caught in the rain!). We ate deep fried Reese Cups (like a Reese Cup tucked inside a doughnut ... wonderful!); and chocolate covered bacon ("Pig Lickers" ... much much better than it sounds); homemade ice cream. We ate huge sloppy sandwiches (steak and cheese for me, polish sausage for her) for dinner, and brought home candy apples, caramel apples, and fudge! (oh, and some Moravian stars that can hang or be used as candle holders). I got an autograph from one of the local weathermen (my 2nd favorite, Mike, after Greg who wasn't there).
We roamed back and forth several times ... ducking inside buildings during showers, and strolling around in between (or when it was only a light sprinkle). By shortly after 8:00 we had seen everything there was to see, and decided we were too tired to wait another hour for fireworks.
We took the bus back to the car, and headed home. On the way home we had the only "negative" incident of the whole day (well, aside from the batteries in my camera dieing!). The car in front of us braked suddenly, then pulled over. I was going very slow, trying to figure out why it stopped; meantime a car came from the other direction. In it's headlights, Andrea spotted something in the road. I thought it was a deer - fortunately, going slow enough to pull off behind the first car. It was NOT a deer!! She had hit a man who had apparently darted out in front of her! The poor lady was histerical!! I had my cell in my hand and had already dialed 911 when I realized that a man (don't even know where he came from) was beside the road and already talking to Rescue. Several people stopped, and at one point they were giving him CPR. After a few minutes, I realized that the situation was under control, Rescue was on the way, and I was probably in the way. With some help from other people around, I managed to back up enough to get back on the road and on my way. We passed the First Responders and Police on their way to the scene. I was a bit shaken, but the rest of the way home was thankfully uneventful!
I have attached a few (very few) pictures from our day.
This is a view of the big ferris wheel (the only thing I might have been tempted to ride, but not with that stormy sky!)
Our fiargrounds have this wonderful dramaic waterfall, that is a permanent fixture.
This was in the gardens ... Andrea waving ... and way in the background you can see our locally famous "monster"! LOL!
There were a lot of great and creative recycling projects!
A bear in a Christmas tree? Why not! LOL!
I picked her up close to 10 am, and we drove to Raleigh (about 45 minutes), and parked the car. We rode a bus to the fairgrounds, and were there by 11:30. We went through every exhibit building ... arts and crafts of every imaginable kind; we saw all the animals (sadly, not allowed to pet any of them); we saw fabulous gardens (and got caught in the rain!). We ate deep fried Reese Cups (like a Reese Cup tucked inside a doughnut ... wonderful!); and chocolate covered bacon ("Pig Lickers" ... much much better than it sounds); homemade ice cream. We ate huge sloppy sandwiches (steak and cheese for me, polish sausage for her) for dinner, and brought home candy apples, caramel apples, and fudge! (oh, and some Moravian stars that can hang or be used as candle holders). I got an autograph from one of the local weathermen (my 2nd favorite, Mike, after Greg who wasn't there).
We roamed back and forth several times ... ducking inside buildings during showers, and strolling around in between (or when it was only a light sprinkle). By shortly after 8:00 we had seen everything there was to see, and decided we were too tired to wait another hour for fireworks.
We took the bus back to the car, and headed home. On the way home we had the only "negative" incident of the whole day (well, aside from the batteries in my camera dieing!). The car in front of us braked suddenly, then pulled over. I was going very slow, trying to figure out why it stopped; meantime a car came from the other direction. In it's headlights, Andrea spotted something in the road. I thought it was a deer - fortunately, going slow enough to pull off behind the first car. It was NOT a deer!! She had hit a man who had apparently darted out in front of her! The poor lady was histerical!! I had my cell in my hand and had already dialed 911 when I realized that a man (don't even know where he came from) was beside the road and already talking to Rescue. Several people stopped, and at one point they were giving him CPR. After a few minutes, I realized that the situation was under control, Rescue was on the way, and I was probably in the way. With some help from other people around, I managed to back up enough to get back on the road and on my way. We passed the First Responders and Police on their way to the scene. I was a bit shaken, but the rest of the way home was thankfully uneventful!
I have attached a few (very few) pictures from our day.
This is a view of the big ferris wheel (the only thing I might have been tempted to ride, but not with that stormy sky!)
Our fiargrounds have this wonderful dramaic waterfall, that is a permanent fixture.
This was in the gardens ... Andrea waving ... and way in the background you can see our locally famous "monster"! LOL!
There were a lot of great and creative recycling projects!A bear in a Christmas tree? Why not! LOL!
The mums everywhere were just breathtaking. Tomorrow, after the fair closes, they will be on sale CHEAP ... sadly, I can't get there.
The "soft" arts were outstanding. This ... "The Morning After" was one of my favorites.
I couldn't even decide which cake (yes, REAL cakes!) was the most beautiful!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
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