Dreaming

I've been dreaming a lot lately, about our house versus moving.  Could we afford to move to one that has most everything that I've wanted in a house, but more importantly, a yard that is more flat than our current one and with a good sized two car garage.  Not so sure that will happen as most we can afford look just like the one we're in or is a the category of "huge fixer upper".

Reality has brought me back to our house and gets me dreaming about this one.  What can we do to get it back in shape?  What can we do to make it more friendly for guests?  Probably the two bests things we can do is to do a HUGE purge.  We've been in this house for almost 10 years and we have so much stuff, shoved in nooks and crannies that just hasn't gotten used in years.  I may possibly just need to take advantage of those folks that call saying they'll have a truck in my area on such and such date and find a couple bags and boxes of stuff for them.  Some stuff may be hard to get rid of, but would love to be strong enough to purge our house as if we were moving into a 800 - 900 square foot house (currently ours is about 1800 sq. ft. according to tax records, but that doesn't include the basement we had remodeled and the extra 1/2 bath down there).

After a big purge, it would be nice to be able to actually clean in all those nooks and crannies.  Add some fresh paint, new trim ~ possibly (builder used door molding as floor molding).  Possibly change out the flooring on the main level to all hardwood and redo the carpeting upstairs in the bedrooms. 

Yes, I even have dreams for outside too!  Lots of wishing and dreaming there for various things.  Just don't want to dream to far in advance so that it seems out of reach.

Been a long day!

A very long day!

Friend found my pedometer in her car and returned it yesterday, so it's been worn all day.  At just after 9:00 PM I've hit over 9,700 steps and really haven't left the house much today.  A vast majority of my steps have been the result of doing laundry today.  About 10 loads washed and dried adds a lot of steps and stairs to your count; especially when you inadvertently go down to soon to switch things over!  Also made a few extra trips downstairs as I'm patching yet another wall and all that stuff is downstairs, too.  Did do some weeding, as well, so I wasn't inside all day.

Looking forward to our oldest getting home from Scouts so we can get the boys to bed and call it a day!

After 35 years

it finally happened.  Took an intentional trip into Washington, D.C. to see the Cherry Blossoms.  I've lived most of my life just out of DC, but have never gone in ~ it was about time!

 Right outside of the Smithsonian Metro Stop.

 Jefferson Memorial across the Tidal Basin.

 Close up of blossoms.

 Tulip display ~ I was partial to the yellow . . .

 and red ones.

 Stopped by the WWII memorial.  Took pictures of the

two states that our foursome were born in.

I'm the only one born in Wisconsin!

Lots of walking, lots of steps, a few tired legs here!

I can now check off seeing the Cherry Blossoms in person, that is if it where on an actual list somewhere.

K.I.S.S.

Thoughts can run quickly through my head and not stay long.  Other times, they stay and linger awhile.

It's those thoughts that I need to pay attention to.

Lately it's been about keeping things simple.  Keeping every aspect of life simple ~ house, relationships, school, cleaning, etc.  Word (s) seem to stay stuck and get mulled over.  Variations of the word come to mind ~ simplify, simply.  Songs pop into my head and chorus' play over and over in my head.  Titles and videos get looked up!  Now I have "Clinging to the Cross" by Tim Hughes because of the chorus.  My A.D.D. brain begins to slow down and begin to wonder about application and definition of simply.  Checking out the definition at a couple different places, it is defined as plan, without art, weak minded, or unwise.  Had always thought of it as more of it as an adverb to mean "1. in a simple manner; clearly & easily or 2. plainly and unaffectedly"; I'll probably ponder this portion of definition and apply to life!  I'll practice Keep It Simple Silly.

Hardy Boys

Not sure when be began reading "The Hardy Boys" to our boys.  It honestly feels like we've been reading these books to them forever.  Know that isn't true ~ we had begun by December 2008 though.  Here's a post from then with the boys in laundry baskets!  Don't think we'll be getting many more photo's like those.

Anyway, we've been reading number 45 "The Mystery of the Spiral Bridge" since yesterday.  The boys and I got through a large number of chapters this afternoon and added a few more with Kevin this evening.  We might just have the series finished before the end of the summer ~ all 58 of them!

Truths about the Hardy Boys:

1. They don't age ~ they are still 17 and 18, even though there has been an obvious passage of a few years.
2. Chet shows up in every book, hungry.
3. Chet has a new hobby in every book.
4. More often than not, someone gets knocked out by the second chapter (sometimes within the first few pages).
5. There are always 20 chapters.
6. Just about every chapter is a cliff hanger, except for 20 (obviously!).

Pick one up, if you like, you may just like the series.

First!

Happy March 1st!  Have changed a few things over from Valentines to St. Patrick's Day.  Weather was nice, warm, sunny and just a few clouds.

One kid was incredibly dirty, sweaty, and stinky by the end of the day.  Good thing he knew he owed me a shower this evening!