The Week Ahead: Period of Reprieve

 

Here's a kitchen from the 1950's.  I wish I could tell you the exact year but I failed to note it at the time I saved the image other than the era.  

This kitchen is pretty much a modern day one in my opinion.  The cabinet style, the bevy of appliances, the countertops all bespeak modern day kitchens.  Change the stove a bit, change the color of appliances to chrome and boom, 2021.   That says something about the overall timelessness of this kitchen's design.

I think I was drawn to this image because of the color combinations of cabinet, back splash and  appliances.  Admittedly it's one of my favorite colors, at least in the same family as the colors I love best.  I like the gray floor but want you to take a peek upwards at that ceiling...It's the same color as the floor.  I think that is rather unusual, as dark ceilings are not what I think are standard in any kitchen.  It works here to make the cabinetry seem ultra light and to further make the appliance color 'pop'.

We can see the utility room beyond the kitchen.   Look closely and you'll see there's matching cabinetry to the kitchen cupboards in that room.  A handy surface with storage underneath where one might fold clothes.  The only thing I wonder at is that light fixture.  It seems to me that would be a spot to bump your head if you had any height at all to speak of.

In the kitchen I've no clue what the light source would be.  I don't think the light in the doorway between the two rooms will be sufficient for anyone's needs.  There's a window above the sink...but beyond that?  Perhaps there is task lighting under the cabinets?  

We can see the dishwasher tucked in near the sink where it would be handy to fill.  The fridge is a fridge.  But let's just look at this stove!  I believe this is the model stove where the burners slide back into the base so they aren't out when you're not using them.   I've seen this model before and I still think it looks more future than 1950's or 2020's either one!   I'm a little bothered by how low the burner portion sits.   Just looks like a hazard to me.

All in all it's a pretty kitchen and one that I think would translate well into our own homes right now.  

This Week In My Home:  

I'm getting a break from keeping Caleb this week.  Last week too was a lesser week of needing to babysit, but this week will likely be free.  Not sure how long the break may be.  Katie was told it might be two weeks before she is able to pick up the equipment and do all the legwork connected to her new job.   Whenever they call her I'm right back on child care all over again but it's looking like I might have most of this week to do what is needed in and out of my own home, provided I can stand the heat to do it.

Honestly, it's hard keeping Caleb physically and I struggle mentally with the long lists I keep running in my head of things I ought to be doing, but on the other hand, I've really enjoyed seeing him at this stage of life where he's learning and expanding his vocabulary and his physical abilities at such an astonishing rate.  I'm filled with awe just watching him each day and excited to see his personality becoming more and more his own.  I confess, I love to cuddle a wee baby but these toddler years...They really are my absolute favorite!  And here I've got access to two of these little ones to see develop and grow.  True,  I spend less time with Millie than with Caleb at present,  but I'm enjoying watching her changes just as much.

But let us plan for the time I have ahead this week, or think I have...

Work:  

Zones are pretty much over and done for the month as far as I'm concerned.  As helpful as I find them in real life, it seems sort of silly to plop myself down in zone work here in the middle of the month not knowing if I'll have one week or two to plug away at tasks.  I'm going to concentrate on these tasks:

Weed the corner flower bed.  Maddie has nearly uprooted the hydrangea (remind me that I do love that old dog, just keep reminding me).  The gardenia has almost been overtaken by the wild swamp iris that I love and loathe at the same time.  It's got a tiny little true blue flower but it gets ungainly and it's there.  There's a world of grass in that bed at the front where Maddie doesn't dig (and WHY can't she dig there?!).   I really need to dig up daylily and divide and replant but I've three buckets of nearly dead ones that I dug up two years ago and it's hot and I know my limits...So weeding.  Putting soil around the back side of the Hydrangea and some more heavier rocks to keep Maddie from doing more damage.

I have coleus that could go in a bucket to replace the spent lilies in that corner bed, too.  I love coleus and it grows so very well for me.  

I need to loosen and freshen the soil in the planter with the Asiatic lilies but doubt the ability of the planter to withstand the task.  Might have to replace that so I'll wait a bit before tackling that job.  

The Touch me nots have just loads of seed pods on them.  I want to take time to harvest as many of those as I can.   It will mean I can plant loads more of these lovely flowers next year.

The porches need to be deep cleaned.  Floors and railings scrubbed.  It's obvious the front porch floor will have to be painted this fall if it's dry enough to tackle it.  I've got paint but am hesitant to use it.  Once I do, there's no going back, as the paint is enamel and what's on the porch is latex...I'll settle for cleaning in bits and pieces each day.   Not planning to tackle any too big for me tasks and work myself into a puddle over them in August heat.

Whatever jobs catch my eye indoors...Cleaning ceiling fans, dusting, straightening an area, refreshing an area, whatever.

Kitchen:  

Part of me wants to meal plan.  The other part of me says to just keep on this month with what I'm doing.  Gathering Fragments and planning meals from them has been a great way to stretch our grocery budget.  Not that you'd notice, since it's all been spent for the month but it has, just take my word for it.  Everything we've eaten has been a fragment.  The only fresh produce we're eating at present is fruit which we'd pretty much run out of over the last week or so before we went grocery shopping.  All other foods went into freezer, pantry or fridge and I'm holding onto all I can until we've used up the last bits of what I'd previously bought.

I think, now that we're a month out from fall is a good time to do a pantry/freezer inventory and see where we stand.  I'm sure that we're lower on green beans and I almost ran out of tomato sauce this month so I'm not making much headway on those two items but what else do I need to replenish?  I'm still thinking taking a small sum of money and just DOING the shopping with or without John is a good idea, but I'm not doing anything until I check what I have first.

John hasn't mentioned wanting anything in particular except the sticky buns, but I haven't made a Tuna Pasta salad in a month or so.  I'm pretty sure he'd enjoy that and right now I've all the fresh ingredients to make it happen.  I want to make chicken soup from some of  the stock and meat I culled from the frames last week.   If I'm going to freeze anything just now, I'd rather freeze chicken soup that's ready to thaw and heat rather than chicken stock.   I'll satisfy my urge to plan by setting those two meals down as absolutes for the week ahead.  We'll gather fragments from there and see how the week goes but I think I have less than I've had these past two weeks to work with.  I'm always surprised by how much we really do have though, every single time, so we'll see. 

I broke down and bought mini bagels, thinking I wouldn't have time to make my own this month.  Still would like to put a few cookie doughs in the freezer.  John does like cookies and eats fewer of the homemade ones than he does of the store bought sorts. 

Leisure/Personal Care:

I needed to freshen my makeup.  I'm looking a bit heavy handed and haggard and tired and I've had my current lot of makeup nearly two years.  It's time for something new.   So this week, though I said I'd be on a low spend month, I've ordered makeup from a source Katie recommended and yes, even ordered the ones she recommended would be best (a sure sign she too feels I need a fresher look, lol).   She mentioned that she's watched YouTube tutorials on one palette she recommended and I will look that up this weekend and see how others use the palette.

I would really love to dig out the genealogy this week and play about with roots, maybe even get up a new post on that Roots and Rabbit Trails blog that I haven't updated in forever.

Read, read, read.  I got all the rest of the books from Julia Quinn's Bridgerton series.  Those books take me about two days to read through but that's because I will snatch every opportunity to read when I'm engrossed in them.   Kate wants to read the series as well but prefers to read them in order.  I find they read just as well as singlets as the sequels give just enough back ground to make you curious but not enough to feel you know it all and needn't read them.

Do little beauty routines that make me feel fresh and pretty.  I don't typically wear makeup at home but would it hurt to put on a bit of mascara and to do my brows?  A manicure is always something that makes me feel lovely and I've just loads of polish and such to use.  I need to pamper me a bit and one of the nicer ways of doing that is to do beauty treatments like masks and such.  Much better than spending to feel better (aside from the new makeup I really do want to keep spending down) or indulging in eating too many sweets or other snack-y sorts of foods I love but need to monitor.  

Other little indulgences I might use: be sure to put on a pair of earrings each day, spritz myself with perfume, make peach or Indigo Punch iced tea, listen to good music while I work...