Wednesday, Bad sleep

 Sleep did not come last night.  I have a wicked cold sore on my top lip that I have been treating. Sissie came and tried to wake me up this morning, but I stayed in bed for another 1.5 hours. I am dragging.

I got nothing done in the shop yesterday as I was just a disorganized mess and it was all my fault.  But I did get a workout at the gym so not all was lost.

Made a big chicken salad, daughter just came and took some home. I am going to her place on Friday and Saturday to work on some secondhand furniture she bought for Kelsa's room. Friday night I am going to the theater and Saturday taking the missionaries out for dinner along with my buddy.  So, I have a busy next few days.

That means I need to get some work done!!! Dang and on a bad night's sleep.  Sissie thinks I am coming down with a cold, but so far so good.

I am going to be productive today.  I read Hawaiian planner's blog and had real guilt feelings about productivity. You guys are all so good for me. You can even throw guilt. Quite the achievement. But it is good guilt and I am grateful for it. Cheryl is a great guilt thrower; she makes me behave all the time. 

Had to go to store last night for bread and found chicken breasts in big packages marked down to 1.19 a pound bought all three. Even though I am on a use it up challenge I could not turn down that price. So put 8 packages of two breasts apiece in the freezer. 

Now for the list:

1. take up neckline in man's suit coat

2. add buttons and another buttonhole to man's suit coat( have to buy buttons tonight)

3. add lumberjack buttons to the waist of a coat

4. add suspender buttons to pants

5. put embellishment on a native American shirt  ( This was all done in one hour)

6. fix the bodice of a flower girl dress

7. try and get started on a pile of pants for my little person. Only 11 pairs!!!!

8. go to the gym

I have plenty to do. I will get it done; I am determined.

It is sunny and warmer today.  In the sun it is almost warm feeling.  It is my joy!  My next joy will be to get most of this list done.

I am blessed with work, and I need to do it.

Looks like March will be a travel month for me. I have invites to go two places all most back-to-back and I have to be organized to do this. Luckily, I have Sissie.

What is your joy today?

God is good

Kim

Tuesday, I am going to like this...

 Quit blaming others, ruin your day yourself.  I am very good at this, but not this month.  This month is Joy You know I am going to let you in on a little secret.... If you look for joy, you will find it, no matter how bad the circumstances are...my life is proof of this, and I never want to be in a place again where I don't believe this is possible. The problem is you have to work at it every day.

Sissie although she gets frustrated easily is really helping me in the shop. The horrible tension is gone. People are picking up the things she has been able to do. It frees me up (to be a little lazier and I am loving that for sure)

Last night Signe' came and spent the night and we went to the gym late.  No gentlemen at all, I am sure they were home watching Gunsmoke reruns. Too bad they missed me and I was stunning in my new tennis shoes.

This morning Lil Sis came over and cut about 6 inches off my Chubaka hair, and it is so nice and light. Trying to get rid of the dye that is on the ends.  I still have a lot, but it looks good.  She is also cutting Sissie's hair into a bob, which is my favorite way for her to where it. Lil Sis was a hairdresser in a former life.  We are happy with her skills.

I made pancakes for Sissie and I this morning as I have been living on yogurt.  Need to eat more protein. I will work on that. Just pulled a bag of boned out turkey from the freezer will make turkey salad for dinner. I love to put toasted slivered almonds, a little onion and celery into my salad.  Sometimes I put grapes or dried cranberries. So good! You can eat it as a salad with lettuce of in a sandwich.

I am enjoying the gym although it still is lonely, and I like going with someone more than alone.  But I will persevere. I need to improve my upper body strength.  My legs can do almost anything.  All those years of dancing and running, I still have strong legs.

My joy for today is that my dog is much better.  He had rolled in something dead and was covered in goop.  This was up at Signe's. He obviously licked himself and got some kind of bacteria and was very sick for a few days. He wasn't running a fever and still had energy and wanted to eat but was having accidents by the door in the middle of the night.  He was so ashamed. I called the vet, and I had meds on hand for nausea and the vet said to give him those as long as he was eating and drinking and wait it out, unless things turned worse.  He said it has to get through the system.  So, I did and I actually left him outside for two nights, to keep from the clean-up. He enjoys being outside, but I like him in at night.  Anyway, he is back to normal and no $700 vet bill.  I did have to bathe him twice last week which is no easy task, and he looks all lumpy, as I did not blow out his coat like the groomer.  So, I will get him in soon, the groomer is a lot less expensive than the vet.

Joys abound my friends.  What are yours?

God is good

Kim

Monday, Catching up! Chart 1 done!

 Sissie and I are back from Missoula and ready to get to work.  Well, she is ready to get to work.  Not so much me. I am blogging which is also important. At least to me it is important and that is all that matters. Right?

It was cold in Missoula like 7 degrees in the morning. You rarely need a winter coat here as it is usually in the high 40's or even 50's. So Sissie and I did not go with winter coats.  But we both bought one on a good sale when we got there. That is good as I have not owned a casual winter coat in years.

I have 6 wedding dresses in the shop, and I am going to call a bride for a fitting and get her in and hopefully have that out by the end of the week.

Sissie is doing a good job chipping away at everything else.  Although there are a few really hard things that I must do.

It is really cold here today but promises to warm up soon.  The chickens were out of water in their heated dish, and the unheated dish was frozen solid, so I will be adding carrying a bucket of water down to the coop while we maintain this cold snap.

After I get my sewing done today, I want to start deep cleaning a few cupboards.... They really need it, and the pantry needs a go through. Just some extra TLC for good measure.

I have completed my first savings chart for the year, so that is always good news. Onto #2 

My joy for today is that it is the 26 of January and I have hardly seen any downtime to be depressed or sad. Well things in the world have made me sad and they always will, but I have stayed up in my mind and that is where I want to be.

Any plans for the week other than to stay warm?

God is good

Kim

Wednesday, Up and Attem!

 So much for making a list, but I tried I will be better today.  Sisie is in the other room banging away on the rolled seam of a pair of levies. We pound the welt seam with a hammer to soften it, and it keeps us from breaking needles.

I have decided to try something new. I am a late sleeper and a night owl. This became much worse after Joel passed.  I am sure much of it because of grief and depression.  But I would like to try and be up by 8 and going by nine.  I know for some of you this is outrageously late, but for me it is what is doable. I would even like to start my day by 7 but right now that is not possible.

So, I told Sissie to try and arrive by 8(which is not clocked at all) and roust me.  She has been letting me sleep. Plus, she enjoys telling me what to do so this works for both of us.  Now will I ever be an early riser like her at a 5:00 in the morning? NOOOOO!!!!! But I can do better.

She is in bed by 7 or 8 I am in bed by 2 to3. So, I am going to try and fix me. This may not work. I have noticed that when I do get up by 8 I am sleepy by midnight, this is good.  May the situation continue.

My fence is done and paid for! Well not really as I have to make payments on it for a few months and my neighbor will pay me back 1/2 of the cost. It looks so nice. The workman did such a nice job. Even installed a light on the corner that keeps getting hit at night.

I have a bride picking up at 2:30 today. Our County fire Marshall dropped off a fancy uniform to have a patch sewed on it, and he has to wear said uniform and speak at some convention in Florida. Well as I was putting away the coat into a bag the pants dropped out of the coat onto the floor and I just found them. So, our Fire Marshall will arrive to speak with no pants.  Just his fancy filigree jacket and his boxers.

Now I have no phone # and his phone box is not set up so I call the main county employee service and tell them my story.  Someone hollers, "does anyone here have Mel's number? " Then they explain the situation as I explained it.... Now the whole office is laughing about Mel and his boxers. They give his correct name and his phone # (something that would never happen in a larger area.) I then call him and explain and let him know that several people in the head county office would like to see him in his boxers and uniform coat.  My life is exciting. So is Mels!

I did not get all the sewing done yesterday but I did get to the gym, and got a few groceries including dog food, and also practiced the piano.  So, I felt like I did well yesterday. Now to do as well today.

I plan on getting my nails done this evening and going to the gym and practicing like a good girl.  I need to give the dog a quick bath. (There is no such thing as a quick bath for Roscoe.) Such fun.

Sissie and I leave tomorrow for our reunion meeting. Excitement all around. Our Aunt is 86 and I am so looking forward to seeing her.  I also want to buy a pair of lighter tennis shoes while I am there. I have a pair of HOKAS and they are great for taking long walks but pretty clunky for the gym.

My Joy for the day is my new fence.  Although now that it is up and it has been down for several weeks, I can't see Rebeccas place as well. She can't see me either. Oh well that is what shouting and phones are for, right?

Well, I am off to be productive.

God is good

Kim

Tuesday, Sissie struggles

 Poor Sissie here she stands so poised and knowledgeable. I am rarely poised.  The knowledgeable part it left for discussion. But she is struggling to learn the ropes of more difficult tailoring.  It takes time and you get faster and faster. Boy, have we had some laughs.

The shop is full, full and Sissie is a little slow. It is aggravation for her as she is normally so good and quick at everything. She will get better; I keep telling her this, but I don't think she believes me.

I have many things to do today.  A bride came in for her fitting, and the dress is due out tomorrow. I need to adjust the lining and everything else is hand work.  I started another antique wedding dress yesterday and I just got it ripped, I need to call bride for another consultation and fitting on that.

But in the meantime, Kim needs to get to work. As in produce something.  Kim also needs to go to the store.  I am out of milk and bread and assorted other things. Ate leftover pizza last night that Sissie made Sunday. I did take some chicken legs out to roast for this evening.

So, I am making a list today as I feel like I need to push myself a little or maybe a lot!

1. Finish wedding dress

2. call bride about fitting

3.put a patch on a uniform

4.hem a pair of pants

5. shorten sleeves on a jacket

6. hem and peg a pair of pants

7. shorten sleeves on a coat and take in back seam

8.  Alter a top at the back, the sleeves and the neckline

9. put a buttonhole on a coat, and alter the neckline

10. call several people for pick up

That is enough and I will probably not get through it today.  But I will try.

I am determined to go get groceries, go to the gym, go get dogfood, and practice the piano tonight, as last night I just vegged.

My joy for the day is watching Sissie struggle, not the struggle part but the laughter when she screws up. Oh, such fun, mostly for me.  I am the evil twin

Anything bringing you joy today?

God is good

Kim

Monday, Busy morning!

 Oh, this meme is so me. Sissie has been busy all morning, she is a little working machine and I have done NOTHING!!!!

It is a great setup! Let me tell you.  SHHHH don't tell her.  The phone has rung off the hook today and clients all morning and more coming. This is good it will keep Sissie busy...while I?

I worked hard at daughters this weekend. We deep cleaned her bedroom; her hubby went through his drawers and decluttered. Hung new blackout curtains, put on new linens. I found a lamp at Goodwill for the nightstand; we put up new hanging racks found at Home depot for close out prices.  $5 and $6 dollars for very high quality.   The room looks lighter.  The knobs on the dressers were either missing or broken in some places.  Realize they are still living in student housing with student furniture. I replaced all knobs and it looks very nice. 

They are saving for a house, so I do not expect them to buy anything new but to get by. We deep cleaned the baby's room (he is 5) and went through all the toys and books and downsized.  Hung up hooks for backpacks and hats in places he could reach.  All in all, lightened the place by 10 large garbage bags. Took many things to good will.

Braunwyn works 40 hours or more at a very labor-intensive job, she is tired and just needed some mommy love.  This mommy was glad to give it. I so understand not wanting to deep clean when you only have two days off a week in which to recover.  Luckily, she has a great husband who is very helpful.

My dog was sick last night but seems to be fine today.  I have no idea what is going on with him, will just keep an eye on him for a while.

Sissie and I are planning on going to Missoula on Thursday for a meeting with our 50-year reunion committee. We will only go if the roads are good. We will stay with our aunt who will be having a 70-year reunion that same weekend we have ours next July.  We always have our reunions together and it is such fun.

It will be a short week for sewing so I had better get busy. 

My joy today is Service to a lady in our church that had a bad car accident.  I took dinner into her last night, and I will check on her later today. She is very bruised and sore, and I think her car is totaled. But doing service for others brings me joy.

Now I have to get to work, dang, messing around has been so fun.

God is good

Kim 

Thursday, Joys all around!

 Sissie is on her 8th pair of pants that needed to be patched in the crotch.  It is not easy work, you think it will be, but it is tedious.  But she did it and I did not have to do it! I have to hand sew lace on a wedding dress, and a bunch of other minor alterations that all take time. 

It has been a nice two days I have been able to get 2.5 wedding dresses done.  I should finish the other .5 today! I have another wedding dress getting picked up tomorrow.

I am going to go up to my youngest daughter Braunwyn's apartment tomorrow and work on her bedroom.  I bought them a new mattress for Christmas, but the bedroom has not been really done over since they moved in 8 years ago. It needs love and a deep clean.  I will stay the night and then come home late Saturday. 

Jackie from The Land of the Living Sky, is my Joy today.  She and I were lamenting about the economy perhaps getting worse.  But I feel like she and I have the skills to face this. You can survive hard times if you have skills.  If you can cook, use less, sew, mend, do without you will get by.  But to be able to do all these things and still have Joy is a real blessing.  I will always be grateful for the things I can do that help me navigate a tough situation.

Went to the gym last night and forgot to put on my sneakers.  I jumped on the tread mill in my boots.  Oh well it worked, not quite as comfortable but I did it anyway. Have to remember to slow down and change clothes or shoes.  I can be such a drip.

Even though Sissie and I have both been busy the shop is still so full. But we are slowly making progress. I think.  I do have two more wedding dresses due in today. Segue: Another wedding dress in now have one more later this afternoon.

Sissie is done, her back is giving out. She is just like me after 2-3 hours, it just starts singing.

I have to complete some paperwork for my late mother in laws estate and get that in the mail today. Just one more thing to add to the list.

Need to run to the dollar store and buy a package of legal-size envelopes, also stop and get some soda, go to post office, and see if Hobby Lobby unpacked an order of thread.  I need several spools and they were out.  But you have to get there right away as they keep so little in stock. Thank goodness it is right next to the gym so I can run in and check the stock.

Well, I am off to finish this wedding dress and call the client!  Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy.

God is good

Kim

Wednesday, Sissie is helping!!!

Sissie and I 

 The shop is now bombed!  Just too much and many of the items are hard men's alterations.  I would really like to get to the point where I only do wedding dresses and have Sissie do anything else.  This would be through the busy season. I think the busy season just hit.

She still has a lot to learn and needs to gain confidence, but she is an excellent seamstress. It is now or never that she learns the tricks.  So rather than just giving her the easy stuff, I am having her work through the harder stuff.  She can do this, I am sure.

I found out Slugs is home now and hopefully she is getting better.  Her last jiffy knee replacement was not so jiffy.

I was dragging yesterday as I had slept horrible the night before.  I did get the wedding dress done and picked up so that was a relief.  Then started on other items, only to find out they were more involved than I thought.  So, I just ripped what I felt like and took the rest of the day off so to speak.

I slept much better last night, And I was up early for a specialist appointment.  All was well except for kidney tests must go back in a couple of weeks. They will do blood work and just see if I was maybe dehydrated. Hope that is all it is, because I need my kidneys.

I need to run to the store to get some thread and fabric lining, then I am going to attack another wedding dress. Such fun!

I have had so much patching come in on work pants.  I think the economy is shifting down as people will mend things before buying new.  It is a sign.  However, I think people should try and mend things and not throw things that could be mended away.

I have to pick Schmills and Kelsa up from school and then get Kelsa to Gymnastics today. Daughter has some late patients. Also, will get gas which has dropped $1.00 since this time last year. I will go out to the tribe to see how much it is out there.

Well, I am off to set the world on fire today.  My joy is that Sissie is here with me.

God is good

Kim

Tuesday, Nothing to report

 Well, my trip to the gym last night was blah!  Nothing to report. Everyone was normal.  How boring. I am still not sure how to use many of the machines, but I think I will enlist help as they have a free trainer there to teach you how to use equipment.  I just have to make sure and behave. That will be the hardest part.

Got all the sewing done on my list yesterday so was pretty proud of myself. I have a wedding dress ripped and ready to sew.  It is horsehair braid so you can understand I am really excited about finishing it.... NOT!

Another wedding dress in this morning and it will be a challenge.  But I love a challenge as long as it does not involve horsehair braid.

I have two new songs for choir and I really like them both. Although one switches at the end from F# to four flats. Just when you think you are on a roll BANG!

I love to do silly frivolous things. I took out a yard of baby flannel and Kelsa, and I made doll clothes.  She helped and the hems were anything but straight.  She was so proud. My mother always let Kay and I be creative.  Oh, we could make a mess, but we had such fun. I am still messy, Kay not so much, the love of creating is strong in this old soul. Why? Because it makes me happy.

So don't be afraid of doing something frivolous just for the fun of it.  Trust me it will bring you joy.

Today's list:

1. finish wedding dress

2. mend suit and replace zipper (ripped have to get lining to replace what is there)

3. shorten sleeves on a dress coat and replace buttons (ripped ran out of steam)

4. start altering a pile of men's clothes

That is enough for the day, I think.

I am having trouble having no spend days.  It is like every day I really need something.  I needed overcoat buttons and black thread, so stopped by hobby lobby last night. I am not doing well on that challenge.  Wanted at least 15 no spend days a month and I only have 4 so far.  Not a good track record.

The posts for the fence between my house and the neighbors are up.  Now we have to have the posts for the driveway installed.  I guess this is the hard part and once the posts are up the fence goes up quick.  It is going to look so nice. Joy for the day, seeing the posts go up.

Okay now I have to go and face the horsehair braid pray for me.

God is good

Kim

Monday, first day at the gym report!

 Well, I am up and attem today. I have plenty to do.  The shop is overflowing, because I have not been paying attention, and have been concentrating my efforts else ware. Now I have to pay the piper. I hate paying the piper.

Determined to not let anything sway me from getting into the shop I made a master list of all the piles and there are over ten of them not counting wedding dresses. I also have 5 wedding dresses coming in this week.  I really need to get my butt in gear.

My house is clean; I have no more excuses not to sew.  I am determined to set a goal every day until I am caught up.

Here is the dreaded sewing list:

1. hem two skirts

2. hem 2 pants

3. hem 2 pants

4. hem 2 pants

5. replace a zipper

6. start a wedding dress.

My real goal this week is to have at least 2 wedding dresses if not three out.  I have two for the 6th of February and 1 for Valentines Day. They need to go out!

Now I know you are all waiting for my saga at the gym.  Hawaiian planner said I would likely meet some people and form some friendships with like-minded people....  Okay let's just say meet people.

I had Signe' go with me.  She says as we enter the door," Mom, pull up your gym app." Me: "What app?  So now we have to stop and download an app, I can't remember my password for apps, so she has to mess with that and the email function on my phone is not set up so she can reset the password for the app store... I am getting fidgety.  I notice a sign out of the corner of my eye that I think reads, leave all your eggs here.  So, I ask her if we have to bring in eggs. I am getting a little worn down by all the rules and I haven't even touched a machine.  The sign by the way said, Leave all your egos here.

Finally, we can check in which means holding your phone up to a little machine and hearing it go beep. It took me 4 tries. ,  Then I am scanning the very large gym for friends.  Very few people there.  Saturday afternoon not a big gym following.  But maybe I will find some male companions about my age. Signe' is showing me the first machine.  I cannot even lift the bar. Then I spy an older gentleman.  He has on patent leather red gym shoes, yes, they were stunning, also bright green, (think calf scours) skintight leggings, then a belt around his waist to support his back and an olive-green bandana tied around his head as a sweat band. I am just starring at his outfit and Signe" hisses, "Mom, stop leering!"  I told her I was not leering and then demonstrated what leering looked like.  This produced uncontrollable laughter.

I can hardly lift anything because I am laughing so hard, that I have an asthma attack. Finally, under control I start on the first round of reps, and I am getting into it and the gentleman with the patent leather shoes turns around and he has an eye patch. I lost it.  Now I am snorting and peeing a little.  I am sorry I am really not judgy like that, but I could not control myself. Signe' is ready to kill me and we move to the opposite side of the gym skipping many machines. She is trying to get me away from my obsession. Soon I spot another older gentleman who has to be 6'7" he is standing like an S and not using any machine, just watching the tv's.  He has his hands in front of his mouth and is deep in thought wiggling his fingers.  He is like that for a long, long time. I Lift my hand up to show Signe' and she slaps my hand down, "Mom don't point!!!!"  I have no idea where my manners have gone, but I just lift my eyes to the heavens and say, "So these are my choices? Toucan man or Mister fingers." Signe' is not amused.

We are supposed to meet several times this week to do gym time together, but all of a sudden, she is too busy.  I don't get it. 

But I am determined, Hawaiian planner knows all about gyms and I am going to trust her.  I already have my workout gear on, this brings me joy, and I am going to the gym tonight. Toucan man might be there.

I will report tomorrow...

God is good He gave me a sense of humor

Kim

Thursday, Some financial Goals

 I finished the book club book last night.  Not my fave, actually found it irritating. Here one moment, but I slogged through. As you can imagine, I don't like to waste time on something I find annoying. The book was not for me.

But tonight, I have book club and will enjoy the company. I found a Swedish Almond cake made at Christmas in my freezer, so I will serve that with whipped cream, and strawberries.  I will need to go and get strawberries.  I also have some left-over chocolates that Sissie made and some leftover Christmas candy.  Use it up is the motto here.

I finished all but one of the Nunsense costumes last night, so that is the first thing on the agenda after this post.  Then I have to dust the house a little and vacuum that whole place.  I need to mop the floors, which won't take long. The house will be spic and span after that!!

I did get the dreaded spare room closet cleaned and I now have three bags to take to goodwill. It is amazing how closets just multiply things; I am sure we have nothing to do with it....

 It is another beautiful sunny day here and I will take it! As we often don't get sun, just dreary overcast.  The utility man from the county was out to mark the fence line, so that is done and the contractor can get started on the fence posts.

My joy today is a clean house, oh and also costumes, finished, oh and also friends coming over. Lots of joys today.

So, onto some financial stuff. I was told never to use stuff in my writing, but here goes:

1. save all my $5 bills (have no idea what goal this will fulfill I am just doing it, maybe travel) 

2. save a penny a day (I fail at this every year, but I am not a quitter)

3. Save all my change, (again not very lucrative when you are not spending money)

These are fun goals for me, I do need to come up with some other strategies for the year, I guess I am starting out slow!

Any joys you want to share?

God is good

Kim

Wednesday, plugging along with goals in mind

 I am still working hard to get my house back, and I must say I am making progress.

The sun is out today which is unusual, but I will take it as my joy today! 

Worked all day yesterday on the house and garage.  I almost done.  The only thing left is the spare room and spare closet.  I am going to set a one-hour timer after this post and get those done. Then I just have the freezers, food cupboards and the pantry. But those are for another week. This week it is about Christmas and bedrooms.

I already have a small bag for goodwill, which will get larger when I do the spare room closet.  Dan came over last night and helped me in the garage.  We got everything back on shelves, and it looks great. I have one more broken bin I need to transfer things from and then I can say the garage is clean!!!!  I had no idea that this would get done during the after Christmas saga, but the contractor needed 1/2 the floor space for cement and other things for the new fence, so it forced me to clean out an area and while I was doing that, I thought just clean and put things where they should go. Imagine just doing it right... something I rarely think of, ya know.

So, I have a sparkling garage along with an almost sparkling house. Have I approached the shop yet?  Well, no but I am thinking about it.

When I was driving home from Twin Falls, I set three important goals for myself.  This year I was going to get a debit card!  I know, I know, Kim joins the 21st century. As those of you know who have been reading me for a while, you know I am terrified of anything dealing with my money.  Too many years, of debt and not enough, have made me paranoid about my checking balance and making a mistake and then having to live with the consequences.  But I have grown up some (very little) and I think I can be trusted with a debit card.  So, I went to my bank on Monday, and I now have a debit card.  I also have my checking account on my phone and my major CC.  I can look at things immediately and stay on track. I am a big girl now.

My second goal was to update our will. I hope to get this done next week

My third is to join a gym. Now I have never done this because I get enough exercise just running the house and shop, plus I would not be inclined to spend the money.  However, my evenings are lonely.  There I said it lonely.  I would never admit that I get lonely.  I have always prided myself on my ability to fill my time with things I enjoy.  But it is dark here at 4:30 and then I find myself watching mindless TV.  I do read a lot, and I go to Sissies, but the night after night in the dark alone is getting to me and might have contributed to my blues in November and December.  There is a health club that charges $25.00 a month with no contract that was built in our abandoned mall. So, the fee it not that high.  I think there is a onetime $50.00 joining fee, and you can cut the contract at any time. I am doing this, so I am not alone in the evenings. Plus, my upper body strength is crap, and my specialist would like me to do some weight training to help with that.

So far, I am way too busy with the house to get to the gym, but I will put that on the burner for after I get the house done.

Those are just three simple goals to help make my life easier, and better run. I have financial plans also, but those are for a later date as in maybe next week.

How are you guys all doing with your Christmas aftermath?  Read my comments from yesterday and See that Hilogene is the winner of the least amount to put away after Christmas award. We should all learn from her example.

God is good

Kim

Tuesday, Getting things done

 Tis a rainy overcast January day here in this part of Idaho.  It is normal for our area. Usually this would put me off, as it can stay like this for up to three months in the winter.  But I am not letting that bother me this year.  I am going to find joy! 

There was a blog I read for years and really enjoyed, called 12 dollars a day. They just quit posting a few years ago and she is back!!!!  I was so excited.  I found my joy, like an old friend returning. 

Both Sissie and I worked way too hard yesterday.  She came up to do laundry, which was bad timing as I had all the Christmas, bedding and things ready to go.  The washer stayed busy all day. 

I just concentrated on taking down Christmas.  It is easier to take down than to put up, but still so much work... (I can hear Cheryl in my head right now😏) But I set a timer for one hour and I was shocked at how much I was able to get done. Sissie made scalloped potatoes for dinner last night and they were so good.  We used up all the potatoes I grew in the garden as they were getting sprouty. 

I got call from a very old, very good friend I did theater with, and she is directing a dinner theater version of Nunsense. Her used costumes came in, and they were very ratty and ill fitting. So, I ran out to the winery last night and lined up all the Nuns... and marked either too long too short, whose wimple is too tight, who needs a pocket under their apron and so on.  It is all simple hemming, should take me a few hours.  I will not work for the Civic theater here as they take advantage and are not at all grateful.  I don't need overwhelming thanks for anything I do, but I also don't need grief, and they are just not nice. My friend Beth would and has gone to the mat for me for over 40 years and I will do the same for her.

Anyway, I have all the Nativity costumes in bins and bins all over my house, all packed up and ready for the garage.  I need help with putting them away.  I have to climb a tall ladder.  So, I will wait for Dan, or one of the kids. All that is left is to take down the tree and its decorations. Not one room is really back to normal but that is my goal for the day.

I really need to get into the shop, but I just want my house back

Just realized book club is this Thursday, and I am hosting.  I downloaded the book last night and it was free! That was a blessing. So, I have been listening to the book as I do my work. Not as nice as getting cozy in a chair but needs must.

So, today's goals:

1. go to garage and get it ready to accept bins (as in sweep an declutter things)

2. take ornaments off Christmas tree

3. take Christmas quilt down in spare room and replace with Hawaiian quilt

4. carry all bins to garage

5. take a load of Christmas boxes to the dump (Sissie did this for me)

6. take down tree

I don't see getting the whole house back to normal as in cleaned and everything put back where it normally goes, but just getting the Christmas out to the garage is enough for the day. I did not sleep well last night as I think over working yesterday put me in overdrive. So, I am not going to do a repeat performance.  Might even squeeze in a nap later on. Kim is slowing down or at least trying to.

Sissie has developed an allergy to a skin cream she has used for years, and it affected her eyes.  She looked like she had been punched last night, and her eyes were so sore.  She is better today.  Poor darling. She is trying so hard to feel better after that nasty flu/cold she had over the holidays.

Well, I need to go set my timer. What are your plans today?  Your joys? Is your Christmas put away, or do you wait until later in January?

God is good

Kim

Monday, Joyful January!

 Well, Hello and I am happy to be back. Missed all of you, hope you had a great holiday.  I enjoyed my time with my girls and grandkids. Did a lot of work at Jethelyn's but spent a good part of the time just reading and goofing off.

Here are some updates: The new fence is under construction. 180 feet needs to be replaced, and I was shocked by the price. The neighbor and I will split the cost. Called insurance but after the deductible and the age of the fence it is no use in really making a claim, as it will pay out so little and just raise my rates.

My Nativity went off without a hitch, and the kids loved it. Received lots of compliments, not that I needed them as it really is about having those kids have a good time. The little boy who played the star was so cute as he climbed the ladder and turned around and then lit up his costume.  It was so precious. One of the wisemen thought he was Charlie Chaplin and twirled his crook the whole time.  So funny. Just a really good memory for those kids and the ones who watched them.

Spent time at my daughter's making relaxed Roman shades for her dining room.  She had one roman shade made for the formal front room and it cost her $740.00.  I about died!!!! We bought all the material and lined and hardware for three large windows for under $200.00. The shades look really professional. I was a little scared as I had never done this before, but I learned a lot for the next go around which will be the family room. There were several strips of material left, so I made 4 table runners, for her side boards and table, plus one extra.  I just can't waste.

Now I am home and facing the cleanup of Christmas. I wish I had not put anything out, but I just was sure all the decos would throw me out of my depression.  It didn't work and added to my stress.  Live and learn. It was a really hard Holiday season.  So, I have decided I will not get the January blues.  January is such a long, dark, overcast, dreary, cold month.  It is something to be slogged through.  Well, I am not going to go there. I am going to find something to be happy about and joyful about every day. No dwelling on the negative because there is always plenty of that as negative is easy to be found.

I received a Kindle for Christmas, and I have really been enjoying that. I have read 7 books already!  I am a super-fast reader always have been. I need to order a cover for it, will put that on the to do list.

But today it is all about getting the monthly bills paid, seeing where I stand with the Christmas bills, and cleaning up the house.  Every room is an almost disaster. I have been spraying as Sissie puts it.  Not really taking down things in an organized manner. But at least I am trying to do something.

So far, I have cleaned out the grandkids toy box, throwing away broken, mismatched things, and making a bag to take to good will.  Then the contractor who is putting up the fence needs a good portion of my garage to store the cement bags. So, I needed to go out and clean up.  I have crap all over the outside of the garage.  Things to go to the dump, a hanging rack to go to Sissies, A load of rakes and hand tools that need to go to the back yard shed. Then there are the Christmas boxes that are all over.  It is a mess of a mess. All I can do is set a timer and get to work!

It is really warm here, in the 50's and no snow although it rains off and on a little. This is good as it means the fence can go up.

SO here is my list:

1. call daughter

2. get bills paid on line

3. go to bank

4. go to bank

5. mail a few bills

6. set timer and get garage and outside of garage cleaned up

7. start taking Christmas down one room at a time (Please)

No time like the present to get started....

My Joy today is YOU! All of you! You lift me up and I hope I do the same for you.  Let's make January joyful.

What is bringing you joy today?

God is good

Kim