One Thing Leads to Another

Hmmm. Where did this picture come from? I did not mean to upload it to my blog...I know Bookworm snapped this shot the other day as the birds were bathing in our castle moat...

This last week I felt puny... I hate feeling puny. I hate how I fall behind on my housework, and I tend to feed my kids bowls of cereal and corn dogs and frozen pizza for dinner...Because I'm too crummy feeling to do anything else.

Well, Saturday, the switch flipped. I felt better. I had taken a 30mg pseudoephedrine pill at about 10am. It was in full force by 1pm. Studmuffin was out cleaning the pool, so the girls could have one last hoo-rah before we close it. (Uh, yeah, the water was too cold and they only stayed in maybe 5 minutes). Anyhoo, while he was outside, I had a burst of energy.

Did I go clean out my garden of weeds? No.

The cause of my invalideness lately (I love creating new words) is ragweed. Outdoors was not an appealing option.

I decided that while I love my house, it needs some change. Specifically Popcorn's room. She has a 12x12 room with a queen size bed. Can you imagine it is crowded in there? Especially considering that organization and tidiness are not in her repertoire. Naturally, I have a solution! Take apart the bunk beds in Bookworms room and get rid of that big bed!



WAIT!

I can't do that. I don't have another bedroom, and someone is forever coming to visit me (which I love) so I obviously need that big bed.

Hmmm....What to do. Whattodo...

What. To. Do.

There I was. Energized. Ready to do work. Snot running out my nose like a river and a voice like a 4 pack per day smoker of 30 years...Jumping out of my skin from the lovely cold medicine that was giving me a false sense of feeling betterness....

Obviously this required drastic measures, people

I did what any sane, hopped up on cold medicine woman who is used to moving at least every 4 years and has been in the same house with the same furniture in the same arrangement for over 2 years.

I rearranged my living room. Which lead to dusting every single surface. And vacuuming off every piece of furniture as well as under it...

Which lead to my ultimate goal:


No, no, no. Not getting rid of the bed. Although that is still a goal. Just not the ultimate goal. Please. Try to keep up.

I have this beautiful solid cherry roll top desk. Strangely, it was the very first piece of furniture we bought as a couple. It has been moved to 4 different abodes, not counting it's original delivery...Which I don't count because WE didn't move it!

It has been in my bedroom since we moved into this house. Because that's where I thought I wanted it when the movers brought it in.

Then, I decided, NO. I did not want it there. But it is large. Heavy. Awkward to move. So it stayed put. I griped about it. I begged to get rid of it along with the desktop computer. Who needs a desktop? Let's go all laptop baby! Who needs a bulky desktop cluttering up their life? Besides, the roll top desk is code for "stuff all your paper work that needs sorted in it and close it..."

So. The desk was on my nerves. Popcorn's too big bed was on my nerves. Obviously, her bed has to stay put...

And also obviously the best time to move a heavy large piece of furniture is when your husband is otherwise occupied and unable to nay say you during a chemically induced afternoon of mania.

So. I rearranged my bedroom. I dusted all of the furniture. I vacuumed...I got the desk as far as I could manage.

Which wasn't very far. Granted, I had it on sliders, but there is a piano in our living room. That is NOT on sliders. It had to be moved to get the desk through the hallway door.

I had to call in the recruits.

Err, recruit.

Okay. I had to admit to my hubby what I had started before I was finished. He walked in the house to find an end table in the middle of the room with the lamp on it...My great great grandmother's dining room table was moved out of it's original spot. The couches were askew. Cushions were on the floor...

"Ooookayeeee. What's up, Babe?" Don't you love how he calls me Babe, even when he knows I probably started something he won't like? Translation: He never likes change. He is almost always certain it will "never work."

"That desk will not fit in this living room. It will be too much furniture. I will just sell it. I'm going to put it in the OEC newsletter for best offer....Why did you start this today?" yada yada yada...



However, he helped me move the desk. After all, I'd come that far on my own, and he knew I'd just injure myself if he didn't step in.

We started the desk out the bedroom door. We scratched the door. I will not type the word that he uttered. This is a PG blog, but you can imagine the words that he let drop.

Oops.

But, we succeeded! We got the desk out of our room where I thought it was doomed to stay forever, and it now has a new, possibly temporary home in our living room...



And, I only have one stray end table left complete with a lamp that I bought at a garage sale for $1. I think it was a moment of garage sale mania...That's my only excuse. I saw it, and literally thought, "That lamp is hideous. Yet, I like it. I think I will buy it. After all, I need a taller lamp on the table in our den." And, I haven't managed to replace it yet. Oh, and the end table? It's the very same end table that was my mother-in-law's when Studmuffin was growing up.

I fear my house is overflowing with "heritage"furniture that I'm doomed to be stuck with through all eternity...Or at least until my kids move out and I generously give it to them out of the never-ending fount of kindness that is my heart...


Oh, and just in case you think the lamp was a strange once in a lifetime aberration that I suffered, allow me to introduce you to my pig...Why did I buy him? I have no idea. I saw him, and thought, "That is one ugly pig. Yet, I love the colors. And that ribbon on the tale. Oh! It's a dollar! I must have it!" And, it now sits on the floor of my house. The location has changed, but every time I start to get rid of it, I get a chuckle out of it's cute patchwork ugliness, and it stays...


Now. Is that picture not worth the 25 minutes of your day you thought were wasted reading this incredibly long post?!!

You're welcome. Again, the never-ending fount of kindness that is my heart is here to pour out love and generosity on the less fortunate souls who actually have stuff to do besides create work for themselves...

About My Clothes, and Other Stuff

See those earrings? Those were a gift from my girls several years ago. The necklace? My sisters got it for me one year when we were meeting in "The City" for Women of Faith. I was still living in Texas, so I was unable to join them for the pre-conference shopping. They each got the necklace, and got one for me so I wouldn't feel left out....Ain't that sweet? (I realize, the necklace is cut off in the picture. Popcorn was my photographer.)


See that black lace shirt? It's a hand-me-up from my niece Sarah. Looooove iiiiit!!

The skirt? A hand-me-down from my Grandma Irene to my sister Dawn, to my sister Paula, and finally to me. It is a very nice quality Pendleton wool skirt. I think it has to be circa 1960s at the very latest. Probably 50s. But, I really don't know. Either way, I love it, even if it does cut me in half after eating, and I inadvertently bust the eye off of the hook and eye closure behind the button....

See those white legs? Those were compliments of my dad's family. We all have them...

See the angel growing out the top of my head? Well, that actually is part of my tree...


See these shoes? The ones on the foot at the bottom of a VERY white leg, complete with freckles? They're from my mom...

But, hey, I bought the green shirt all by myself!

Caution: Drastic topic change straight ahead!

Guess what?

Can you guess?

Can ya?

Huh, huh?

Okay, I know, you give up....

This morning headed to Walmart at 6am to buy some gifts for my girls from somebody who asked me to pick something up for them. It was no big deal since I was out of tape, wrap, and gerbil food.

So, I'm wandering around a nearly vacant Walmart, perusing the toy aisle, trying to decide what to get the squirrels, and this lady came up and asked me about Zhu-Zhu pets. I said "I have no idea about them. My daughter keeps asking for them, but I haven't seen them in any store..."

The lady in the toy aisle replied, "Oh, they have them up at the jewelry counter. You can go get a voucher right now, but you can't actually buy it until 7. They are only selling 53 of them today."

Well, Gentle Reader, before she could even finish her sentence I was wheeling my cart out of the toy aisle, through housewares, hung a hard right and skidded to a stop at a lady with a stack of cardboard boxes in front of her...

"Excuse me, are those the Zhu-Zhu pets?" I asked in the most casual voice possible for someone who is out of breath from running through Walmart like a crazed person...

"Yes! You can have a voucher now, but can't pick it up until 7am."

"Thanks," I casually replied and politely took my voucher....Only to walk away and click my heels to the side and do a little happy jig after I slipped around the corner into the party supply aisle...Only to see a man looking at me very strangely as he stocked wrapping paper...

So. The moral of the story is a very fortunate family member gets to be the lucky person to give Popcorn the much coveted Zhu-Zhu pet.

The End.

My "New" Mixing Bowls

I got some "new" stuff when we visited my in-laws last weekend. Remember: It's a good idea to visit your mother in law when she has been cleaning out cellars and attics. It inspires her to thin out some of her stuff. See the thermoses? I've actually had those quite a while. I got those from Brent's Aunt Aleta. They were his grandpa's thermoses. I love red. I love these thermoses! The glass jars are from the cellars at the house Brent grew up in. She had lots of these jars. I wanted more, but I'm going to have to make a repeat trip because I was out of room. I got the round grater at a garage sale for free. I bought an old scale from the family, and they threw the grater in because they wanted to get rid of it! Apparently they sensed my love for free stuff!

Isn't this blue bowl beautiful? I love blue.

I made Pioneer Woman's Coffee Cake Literally the other day. Of course I was ready to jump on the chance to use my new bowls! Don't you love this green? I love green.

Isn't this a great yellow? I love yellow. In fact, I love most colors. That's why I have 9 different colored place settings of Fiesta Ware, and even more colors in serving pieces...And there are so many colors I'm missing out on!

Know what I don't love? Cleaning the kitchen after I baked a cake and cooked dinner at the same time that I was nagging my kids to complete homework and piano practice.

By the way, the coffee cake was fabulous. I totally could have snacked on it all day. Luckily we were so busy at work that I was only able to heat my lunch and eat it in a 5 minute time period. Yes, I heated my food and ate it in 5 minutes...Then I grabbed a bite sized piece of cake and crammed it in my mouth as I was heading down the hall to throw some lead on and start the next case...

Cooking Lessons

Mom reminded me that I needed to do a post about learning to cook. I had forgotten I promised an explanation in a previous post regarding decisions.

I was the youngest of four. By the time I was old enough to really be a help to Mom in the kitchen, I was also able to help Dad. I preferred that anyway. So, I would show up for lunch, enjoy the bounty set before me, and head back out into the field, or whatever else was on the agenda for the day.

Now, I did know how to bake. I loved to bake. Still do, but alas, my thighs love baking also, so I limit it to special occasions. I think my ability to bake mislead Studmuffin going into our marriage. You see, I had a roommate who could cook. I mean, seriously cook. She had grown up in a single parent home, and she was often responsible for having dinner ready when her mom got home. Unless she herself was at work too, then I guess it was a collaborated effort. I always admired Sabra and her ability to do anything and everything.

But, we are talking about my lack of cooking skills.

One of the first things I cooked for my new husband was my mom's famous Mexican Casserole. Virtually impossible to screw up. Unless you use a can of chopped jalapeno peppers instead of green chiles. I mean, seriously, how different could it be?

Different enough to make it darn near inedible. Unless you're my brother David, of the cast iron stomach. He ate the whole 9x12 pan in one setting. I think Studmuffin was relieved, because even though I kept saying "Don't eat it, it's not worth it," he was sure this was some sort of secret new husband test that he was doomed to fail if he did not eat one of the first meals I prepared for him. I don't know, maybe he was right.

Oh, and I recently learned that no matter what you do, if you use a can of Bush's Grillin' Beans in your chili, it's ruined. I wish I could pretend this was a mistake of years gone by, but it's more like last winter gone by. It was awful. Truly awful. I had to pitch the whole batch. I'm shuddering just remembering.

So, basically, we lived off of hamburger helper, spaghetti, and CiCi's Pizza. They sold a large one topping pizza for $4.99. We would call in the carry out order, and if we arrived before it was ready, we got free drinks. Obviously, we frequently arrived early.

Studmuffin also had to learn to subsist on very little meat in the early years of our marriage. I did not like meat at that time. Especially not red meat. I lived on pasta, bread and produce. And of course chocolate and chips and salsa.

However, as many of you know, when I became pregnant with Bookworm, I had hyperemises gravidum. Simply put, I threw up around the clock for 40 weeks straight, through delivery, and really doubted it would ever stop. I seriously vomited nonstop through the entire labor until she popped out, and it stopped. It was almost like magic. So, during that pregnancy I learned to love meat. Meat of all kinds. Gimme meat and more meat. I learned that one bite of uncooked fruit or vegetable could set me into a vomiting fit that did not stop for days. It was awful.

So, after Bookworm was born my mom got me a subscription to Quick Cooking magazine. This literally transformed our lives. I started planning menus, where I tried at least one new recipe every week. That truly has to be the best gift I've ever received, because I've used those recipes and the skills I learned through trying new mixtures of ingredients nearly every day since.

So, I will now share a little bit of my skills with you today. It's simple, quick and nutritious, which is the 3 main qualifications for most things I cook. And, I have no idea why the photos are sideways, but I'm too lazy to go back and re-upload them.

The first thing you do is bum some fresh squash off of the lovely couple down the street. Apparently, you did not get around to planting your squash early, and you still don't have any fresh for yourself. But, as Grandma Irene once told me, "Never leave your windows down in the summer. Someone is likely to leave squash in it." So, really, I'm doing my neighbors a service by taking some squash off of their hands.

Ingredients:

Squash, sliced
Onion, halved and sliced (I used maybe 1/4 of a large onion)
Fresh Parsley, chopped
Diced tomato
Garlic salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Drizzle about 2 tbsp of oil over the whole thing.

Place ingredients in a microwave safe casserole dish with lid over it. Cook in microwave until tender. Time varies based on quantity of each ingredient used.


Another variation is to slice 3/4 tablespoons of butter over the whole shebang and sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese. However, we're going low cholesterol in this house, so we aren't enjoying that variation around here! Now, go bum some squash and enjoy!

Am I a Mooch, or WHAT?!

I was reading through my blogs, (I never denied being egocentric) and I noticed a very disturbing pattern. The doggie bed my sister gave my dog....The table Studmuffin's aunt gave us....the girls Halloween costumes...the Desert Rose dishes from The Original Prairie Woman... I did not like what I was thinking. "Andi, you are a serious mooch! Go out and buy your own stuff!"

I'm not a mooch! I'm not! Seriously! Cheap, maybe, mooch......Nope!

I had a sudden flash of packing for college....Most of those possessions were thanks to my sister, Paula...the iron, the lamp, the clock, well it goes on and on. My cell phone is from my niece, because a neighbor girl ruined mine, and then the one my sister gave me broke (notice neither of these instances were my fault...that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!) My mind started to spin circles (more than usual for those of you who wonder), I began to sweat (again, more than my usual sweat...this is paranoid sweat) and I became a tad concerned.

That caused me to take a brief inventory of my humble abode.

My bedroom furniture is thanks to a gift from The Original Prairie Woman....

My end tables are from Studmuffin's growing up years....

I have a dining room table that was my great-great grandma's...

The furniture in the kids bedrooms were thanks to my mom...

The hutch in my dining area was refinished by Studmuffin, but originally came from my mother-in-law...

The decorations are just as bad....

Have I bought NOTHING for myself?

Have I?

Huh?

Tell me?

What about my....? Never mind, that was a gift....

Thinking,

Thinking,

Hey I know! I bought my....Nah, that was a present too.

Think, Think, Think

Oh, this is getting painful,

Hmmmmmmmm


Oh crud, this ain't working out so well in my favor....

Remember that show Spin City? (I had such a crush on Michael J Fox as a kid, until I realized that I was probably taller than him, and like the rest of the short guys I knew, he might call me "Andre the Giant." Yes, my childhood was painful, but somehow I survived.) I'm sure I can spin this to my favor....

Let's see....

Okay, so maybe I get lots of gifts from people. Maybe it's not because I'm a mooch, but maybe it's because they all love me and want to bless me! I'm pretty darn lovable after all. Hey, who am I to rob someone of their blessing by helping me? (Thanks Paula for that little saying. I've been waiting for an opportunity to use that example...What do you mean you didn't mean it that way?)

Maybe I really am cheap...cheaper than I realized... That is a scary thought, dear reader, because I already thought I was pretty darn cheap.

Wait! I'm not cheap! I'm not a mooch! I'm eco-friendly! I don't waste a single item! It's called recycling! Not CHEAP, not a MOOCH, it's called RECYCLING!!!

Hey! Whoddathunkit? I'm green! Yeah me!

P.S. Aren't my posts boring without the benefit of photos? Maybe someone will give me a camera since SOMEONE washed mine! Again, I claim little to no responsibility for the aforementioned broken items.... So, as I was saying, if you'd like to bless me with a free camera, I'll bless you by allowing you to bless me. Hey, I'm just generous that way. Yep, that's me...I'm a giver!