Busy, Busy!

While I haven't managed to finish a whole lot, I have been working on several projects and the ones I have managed to finish are fulfilling.

Ariana's room still needs to have texture put on the rest of the ceiling and then have a coat of paint put over it when it dries, then the floor goes down and she can move in! Grandma got sick 2 days into her visit and wasn't able to help much - but she did work for about an hour while the Tylenol had her fever down. I figure a full day of work to finish texturing and painting and another day to lay the floor. We'll get there soon.

While my long-time friend Diana was here for a visit last week we started sorting through the stored clothes, and I found that I am more than covered for a boy or girl pretty much through adulthood, or whenever they start having strong opinions about what they will wear. I took 4 yard debris sized garbage bags full of clothes that were stained or really worn or ones I just really didn't like (too 'mature' for little girls or sayings like "Girls Rule and Boys Drool", etc) to Goodwill. Then I have another 12 or so 13 galleon bags of clothes that weren't my favorites that are set aside potentially for a garage sale - and that was just the 1st time through size newborn-12. I have all the 14/16-adult sizes to still go through (including all the things Jeff and I will never wear again), and I have to go through the smaller sizes again. I am trying to limit the clothes to 1 18 galleon tote for each size for each sex (ie 1 2t tote for boys, 1 2t tote for girls, 1 for each in 3t and 4t, etc). I will have 27 totes when I narrow it down to that, and it is still too much since coats, snow clothes and shoes are not included, but it is a step in the right direction. At this point I have to get rid of about an 18 gal tote worth of 2t and 4t boys and 2t, 3t and 4t girls and I have to count out things to see if 6/6x, 7/8 and up can fit enough clothes in a single tote to work. My goal is to try and make some money off the clothes at a garage sale (or maybe two) since having an unemployed husband makes me see the $ as a way to keep the savings from disappearing completely. Plus, I told the kids if they help, they get a portion of the sales for themselves. If the garage sale thing gets too daunting or if/when things just aren't moving, then I will take it to our homeschool group and let people take whatever they want, then take the rest to Snowcap or another organization that offers things at a price poorer people can actually afford (unlike Goodwill and Salvation Army as far as clothes go). Being realistic, if I can't manage to get the garage sale thing together before April when Baby Riggs is due, then I will just let the junk go. While the $ would be great, not having the burden of stuff is better. Lots to do on this, probably 4-5 full days of work to get just the clothes finished.

Then of course I have 3 or so big boxes of toy sets that have all their pieces, several more boxes of VHS and misc junk and 8-10 boxes of misc collectibles and things Jeff (and I) have had for years that need to be condensed and possibly sold. He has already started selling video games to pay for newer games - made $95 there so far. I know recent video games are significantly different than misc junk, but I like the thought of turning our clutter that is just sitting in the basement into $. I don't expect a lot and just like with the clothes, I will dump it if the garage sale thing ends up more hassle than it is worth.


I fixed the leak in (well actually out of) the bathtub and figured out where the kitchen sink is leaking from (still have to fix that) and the most likely culprit for the bathroom sink issues. Once I replace the kitchen sink and faucet (mid-end of Feb if all goes well), I can use the remaining caulk to fix the bathroom sink and touch up the bathtub to make sure there are no more leaks.


I managed to finish a retreat this weekend that was very interesting and enlightening - I even did my homework during the week long break between part 1 and 2. It was quite valuable to see how the whole set up for that homeschool group was further developed and a solid direction was chosen for the future of the group. I am excited to see how these changes will affect the group in this next year. Yes, I am taking notes on what worked, what hasn't and my suspicions as to why which will help me with new groups down the road. I suppose on one hand it is bad to be watching as if it were a maze and they were the lab rats, but since I am right there running with them (though still maintaining enough distance to see the big picture) maybe it isn't so bad?

At the end of the retreat we squeezed in an affirmation exercise where people said positive things about each attendee. It was humorous that the first word used to describe me was "unique". I seem to remember "intellectual," "knowledgeable" and something about "bringing people together" and/or "being memorable" and "keeping people on task," but "unique" sticks with me. I like that. Those kind of exercises are not ones I look forward to because I find them awkward, but I understand their value esp to emotional/empathetic people. I guess it was nice to hear what people thought about me too. It at least lets me know that I am not too far off in my own assessment of the image people have of me.


A huge YEA! was getting the couch situation resolved. I haven't bought a couch ever. Since they are well used when we get them, they tend to last about 3 years before they are literally falling apart and need to be replaced. This last couch was dead before we got it (we were told the couch was a nicer newer one, and after a friend's brother picked it up as a favor we discovered that it was pretty bad), but since it was in better condition than the one we had, we traded up with the intention I would finish rebuilding the arm of the nice couch in the garage (another one given to us) soon. Well, that was 3 years ago. I actually at one point had the arm almost finished and then the kids walked on it because the couch had junk piled on it and they couldn't see/didn't care and demolished the work I had done. Rather frustrated I gave up and said we would just go to Salvation Army (where we had some store credit) and get a replacement and take the one in the garage along with the one in the house to the dump. 3 things I didn't consider: 1, most people (or at least the ones who donate) had pets which means the couch had hair all over it or smelled like animals and therefore had dander (both major allergy issues); 2, more than half the couches were hide-a-beds which made them too heavy for my pregnant self, my dad with back problems and my husband to move on our own; and 3, because couches cost so much new even Salvation Army charges $200-$400 for a couch. There were exceptions to the rule including a bunch that were in the $150-$175 range, but those were either covered in hair, hide-a-beds or both. We did manage to come on a 50% off day, which made the prices more reasonable but Jeff and I decided it would be more trouble than it was worth to try and make something work. We ended up deciding to bring the couch from the garage in putting the broken arm next to the wall. My dad helped us get the old couch out and broken down enough to fit in his truck and the garage couch in. Then he helped me get the arm as patched together as we could. We replaced the bent wood screws and added bracing to the ends with chunks ripped off (it would have been better to get whole new pieces of wood, but not now) so it works. It is not very sturdy and I have a feeling we will end up with an armless couch down the road since both arms were not put on very well in the first place, but we have a couch completely covered in upholstery! Unlike the one we just got rid of that was mostly wood with a little cardboard, literally. I would very much like to shampoo the couch since it picked up quite a bit of dirt sitting in the garage for 3 years, but it is comfortable and works for now. I know that cleaning it wouldn't last anyway - one of those guarantees about having a house full of children, there will always be dirt and whatever the kids touch will end up covered in dirt. Besides, there are many things I'd rather put my energy towards than keeping the couch clean.


I've also made some great progress on the plan for setting up/dividing up the one large homeschool group and I have swayed others to see how this is a good thing. A few more people to volunteer in leadership positions and some more information from more seasoned homeschoolers, and I am ready to take the plunge and see how it all unfolds.


It is exciting and energizing to see all the progress I've made in the last month. There is more to do, but I am confident that at least some of it will get done before Baby Riggs becomes the center of my attention.