The Week Ahead: Rawr

We've just returned from Bess and Sam's where we celebrated Isaac's 2nd birthday.  At one point, he came in the front door and smiled at each of us.  Not a grin, but a gentle sweet smile, a very satisfied one, happy that all the people he loves had gathered in one spot.   Josh is the showy one, the one apt to perform and garner attention.   Isaac is quieter in his ways, not so prone to demand attention but that little smile about said everything to each of us and made us glad we were there.



Dinosaurs and cookies  were the theme of the day and he was pleased as punch despite not feeling well.  Both boys have a general allergy crud ongoing at present.

At one point Isaac came in and came straight to me.  I could tell something wasn't right but it wasn't until he got down and pulled at his britches leg that I was sure of it.  Then I had a sudden pain in my thumb and looked down to find an ant biting me.  I told Bess, "Strip him...He's been in ants."  He never put up a fuss about those ants which did hurt let me assure you but the pained look left his face as Bess removed his clothes.  Thankfully he's not as allergic to them as Josh.

Lovely day for a party and a lovely party.  The little house, which Josh assured me would never fit the whole family does fit us all.  And to see two happy little boys enjoying the extended family about them was lovely, too.

I did wonder at one thing and I've wondered over it before.  These little ones get put down for an all too necessary nap, often while the house is full of company...What must they think when they get up again and everyone is gone?  Isaac left  a houseful of guests behind him when he took his nap and no one but Grampa and Gramma were there when he woke up.  I would just like a quick peek inside a two year old mind to know these things.

Last week:   I think making myself accountable to you all last week for what I did in my home made me step up my game!  Seriously, I did every job on my work list last week.  You might never know it to see the sticks in the yard yet, but I assure you, I spent a bit over an hour outdoors after that storm clearing up branches and sticks.  I see there are loads more out there though...

I made all of the meals except the Chicken Tikka Masala.  We still have leftovers on hand that I am planning to utilize tomorrow and put the rest in the freezer.

My hand sewing wasn't sewing, but  ripping seams from the slipcover.  I literally spent hours finishing that task on Thursday just because I knew I'd have all day Friday to concentrate on the remaking of it.

And I never did pick a new book, though I did receive one in the mail.  Instead I read a few fiction stories in my vintage February magazines, which is, in it's way, as good as reading a book..

Time to plan the week ahead.

Work:  

Zone:  Bed and Bath Rooms

Just a good basic cleaning of all the bedrooms and baths and perhaps hanging pictures or rearranging what I have in my room so there is something over the headboard. Come to think of it, I've borrowed so much from the spare room to use in my living room I might ought to consider the same in the guest room!

 I also want to look for material or something to create a bed skirt for our room.  It's not needed with the winter cover, but we're hitting mid-70s this week...and that means in a few weeks the summer covering will be necessary.  Our summer cover is a proper Queen sized piece, not a heavy King sized coverlet as we have now so the base of the bed will be exposed and it's not a pretty site.


 I came across an item on JES's blog Strangers and Pilgrims from Catherine Beecher the other day.  It was a checklist for keeping the home in good standing and item #1 Go about each room, drawer, closet...What is out of order?  What needs to be done? Plan time and make arrangements to do each task.

Such a good idea and I thought really I ought to do this once a month, just a walk through say towards the end of the month and then plan to attend to these needs in the zone week, unless of course, it was really pressing.   This month I'm just off a major month of organizing and decluttering but I thought I'd share this idea with you all.  I'll incorporate this into my last week of February though.

Okay, real work planning now.  This week should be fairly easy to work in.  I've almost finished the slipcover.  I need to do something about the fronts of the arms and attach the sides to the back.  I may have to patch this area out.  We'll see.  Overall it looks pretty good but there's some thinking to be done and I don't expect to finish this in say thirty minutes come Monday.

All the usual routine things that typically go into a week: dusting, vacuuming, sweeping, meals, clearing up after, etc.  Just because I'm working in a zone doesn't mean all the rest of the house gets no attention at all.

Make rolls for the freezer and perhaps a pan of cinnamon rolls for weekend breakfasts.

I still have nothing on my entry doors...I'd really like to take time to find something either from my shed or actively go out and look for something to work with.

Begin digging out the corner flower bed.  It was rather pretty a few years ago but Maddie's dug out all the flowers along the backs of it and piled mounds of dirt here and there.  The soil is still damp enough to be easily dug.  Now would be a great time to work on that.  I will go slowly with a little each day perhaps and while I'm removing the few remaining plants I'll try to plan what it is I'd like to see in that area.

Pick up the next lot of sticks and branches that are in the yard.

Meals:  

Birthday party: Burgers, chips, cookies

Roast Beef, Baked Potatoes, Salad

on my own xs2

Tuna Casserole, Green Peas, Apple and Celery Salad

Hamburger Steaks, Wild Rice, Green Beans, Pear Salad

Leftovers

Leisure:

Hand Sewing...If I do go out to shop for stuff for the door wreaths I may buy a skein of yarn (something inexpensive) and try my hand at learning to crochet.  Katie's offered to show me what she knows and I'm sure I can find something on YouTube so I can practice basics.   Definitely spend some time making yoyos, too.  I find hand work is a good mind and body quieting  task.

Spa Day for me.  I haven't done a full routine in many months and I feel the need of the attention and care for myself.

I think I want to take a day of shopping.  I think the new items for Spring are on the store racks now and I'd promised myself I'd look for spring things.  I need new bras, too.  But a leisurely day of shopping might be nice.  I'm not firmly committed to this just yet, but maybe.

Reading The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.