Progress

If you're friends with me on facebook, you know that this weekend we finally-- 5 weeks later!-- returned the kids' to their bedrooms (they'd been "camping out" in the sitting room all that time). The upstairs expansion necessitated them staying away from the second floor of our home altogether and then even once the new space was all closed up and safe again about 2-1/2 weeks ago, we decided that instead of just deep cleaning the kids' bedrooms (that were by then quite dusty from all the work), we would take advantage of the opportunity to rip up carpets, patch sheetrock, paint ceilings and walls and trim-- and even floors, in some instances!-- and reorganize/rearrange the rooms.

The boys' room: 

The girls' room:

 

It feels good to have the work in those two rooms done and know that we are, indeed, making progress (albeit slow at times). For a few days there I had the brief fear that we were making matters much, much worse.

In the meantime, despite some days of sore neglect thanks to my serious preoccupation with painting the bedrooms, the vegetable garden continues to amaze me. My menu planning of late simply consists of figuring out which vegetables & herbs really need be consumed and going from there. These are the days that are a trial for my meat & poultry loving oldest son, but the days of real satisfaction for this girl who could practically live on veggies and rice/pasta because I love it so much.

And, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, can I just say it again? It's amazing what can grow from a small seed!

Even during the house chaos upstairs, I did my best to continue taking ground downstairs. I reorganized bookshelves and cabinets and did some rearranging of some large pieces of furniture (that job required Daniel's help, although I put forth a valiant effort before finally determining that even if I could move the huge wardrobe by myself, I probably shouldn't since I would most likely scratch the floor in the process). I cleared out space for new school materials that were ordered and then subsequently arrived.

I am now officially amped for the start of a new school year.

Before we can start school, though, we are headed out of town for a youth conference that Daniel is leading worship and speaking at. I'm excited, if momentarily distraught about leaving 4 of my children behind for 6 days. I don't think I've ever left any of them for that long and it's a strange sensation to be giving them instructions on where all their belongings are located in their suitcases so they can fend for themselves.

(I write, "fend for the themselves," but the truth is that they'll all be well taken care of. Two are going to my parents' and two are going to a very good friend's. I really am not a smidgen worried about them. Let's be honest: it's me I worry about!)

On a final note, lest you think it's all upward and onward progress around the little yellow house and no reality, I leave you with these photos that I took the other day for fun:

Sometimes (a lot of times, actually), I leave the non-perishable groceries on the counter for hours or, yup, even overnight.
Some habits die hard. 

This pile had a home on our dining room table (with occasional and temporary relocations to my bed) for WEEKS.
(Have I ever mentioned how much I hate putting laundry away?) 

I like to blame Daniel for leaving clothes lying around, but these are ALL mine.
(Again... some habits die hard.) 

This picture doesn't actually show how disgusting my refrigerator is right now so you'll just have to take my word for it: the shelves are icky.
(If I were to pay anyone to do any job for me, it might just be cleaning my refrigerator. Blech.) 

 

The end.