PAINTING Day 1

The painter came today for his first day of work. Said he would like to get the alcove outside the bathroom almost finished.

Well, this house does NOT like the word finished. Job was to remove mismatched crown molding and put up new matched molding, remove loose paint from ceiling, and put on a coat of paint.

First mistake was taking down the large crown molding above the bathroom door. Oops, molding covered unfinished wall. New molding will not cover unfinished wall. Okay, no problem. Will buy more large crown molding to re-cover this area. Check.

On to the rest of the molding to be removed...second mistake. Oh, look, an electrical wire was hiding behind the molding; only it is not connected to anything. Okay, no problem. Cut the wire. Check.

Now to deal with the wall at the doorway where this wire ran up in front of. Nasty, unfinished wall. Well, could put up corner molding...nope, too wide. Remove wood from side of archway and replace with a wider strip. Okay, no problem. Truly was no problem.

Trim electrical wire to floor so the wood strip will fit. Oops, wire is live! Third mistake.

Thought this project could be well on the way to be completed today. NOT happening.

Must find out where the wire is after coming through the floor. Go downstairs and look under the drop-ceiling. Oh, there you are! Make sure the breaker is off and cap the wire. Okay, no problem. Check.

Day is almost over now. Well, no paint on walls in alcove and only an hour left. Patch holes and nicks in kitchen and start repair on livingroom ceiling. Okay, no problem. Check.

The joy of working in an old house. Deep breath. Close my eyes and think about how it will all look at completion.

On Saturday evening, Feb. 19, Hannah came up from VA for a visit. She came Sat. evening because she got a new dog, Ava. Looking forward to meeting her.

After church on Sunday we went out for dinner. Had a fun time at Marco Polo. Just love their food. Best Chinese around!

When we got home we got another surprise. Titus and Shayla had also come up from VA to visit until Monday night.

Nathanael stopped over Monday morning and stayed through the night.

So, we had a full house once again with only Isaiah and Alicia of the Claytor gang missing. Talk about a rowdy and fun time. They were in their glory telling all their stories from growing up. Ah, what a mother didn't know.

Today is Friday...time to be with Brooklynn. On our way over to the house we pass a motorcycle shop every time. Well, this time she says, "When I'm 16 will you get me a motorcycle?" It was hilarious. She was very serious. She knows you have to be 16 to drive. She has already said that when she is 16 she will drive my car to my house so I don't need too. She has also asked me to get her a car...of course, it must be blue. Smart girl. Very good color.

Brooklynn had four shots last evening for school so right now she is taking a nap. They must have really wiped her out. Maybe they gave her sleeping shots as she doesn't always take naps now.

Grandma spent the last two nights here because on Tuesday a young guy who tried to commit a burglary at a house down the street from hers was hiding in her yard behind her kitchen wall and the cement wall. She had opened the door twice not knowing who was there and when she realized where he was hiding and that she didn't know him she yelled at him to get out of her yard and then quickly closed and locked the door. Needless to say it shook her up and she didn't want to be at the house. The police were already searching for him at that time because the owner of the other house was at home and confronted him and chased him. The police didn't realize there was a gap behind the wall of Grandma's house. They have not caught him.

This weekend I must prepare the house for painting. Insulation put in on Valentine's Day and this coming week and the second full week of March the painter will patch and repair the walls and then paint. So, all things on the wall must come off and all small knickknacks must be put away. Now, where do you go with the furniture in the Hobbit house? Um, the middle of the floor. Paint one wall and put furniture back...push other furniture to middle and paint other wall. It will definitely be fun. NOT!! I will need on long vacation when all is finished. It will look nice, but I will be exhausted from things being out of order!

My youngest daughter tells me I should write here on my blog. What do you say when you have not been on since September?

Well, I could back-track and tell you what has happened since then. No, that would probably be long and boring for you to read.

So, I'll tell you that as of today I am healthy and alive and busy and crazy as ever...and...and...and. Well, you get the point.

We had our house insulated on Monday. Some people have sick kids on Valentine's Day...me, I had a contractor come into my house and make a MAJOR DUSTY mess. I thought I would go crazy with the amount of dirt it had left behind. Old plaster walls are very messy. It took 15 hours to dust, suck up, and wash it all away; only to have my youngest daughter pull a book off her shelf and comment about the amount of dust still on it. CRAZY!!

My Pennsylvania granddaughter received yellow roses from her Pappy for Valentine's Day. She was very excited but wanted to know why Aunt Rachel got a glass (vase) to put her roses in and she didn't. All was explained and she loved the roses and the idea of taking them home to put in a glass...no; vase.

Hannah is up for a visit. She got a new puppy today to keep Rocky company. Rocky...take care of that puppy.

Today is September 11, a day to remember when our country fell under attack by radical people. We have moved forward, but they still hate us and what we stand for including being Christians and believing in the LORD Jesus Christ.

Has time healed the hearts and lives of those that have lost loved ones that day? Many programs on TV showed what happened and talked to those who survived the attacks on the twin towers that day. They talked to some whose family members survived when they thought they had lost them. They talked to Tom Burnett's wife and Mark Bingham's mother. These two men were on Flight 93. But so many others are out there without their loved ones and some gave birth after many months passed. Have any of them accepted Jesus as their Saviour or do they blame God for allowing this to happen? This is something I wonder about when seeing these programs.

Well, we are going through times of lay-off from work for Rick. Two days off one week and then one day; and then for Labor Day it was not back to work until this past Thursday. This week is two days and next week will be five. This changes from day to day.

Just finished reading The Little Minister by J. M. Barrie. He wrote Peter Pan. I have never read Peter Pan. It is on my to read list. But The Little Minister was a challenge. First, he has the people speaking as the Scots speak, of which they are. But, I'm not Scot, so I had to make my brain work extra hard and try to translate it into English. What a challenge!! So, if you decide to read this book stick with it and you will enjoy it. What should have been a quick read ended up taking forever.

Mahjong is still my favorite new game. It's funny because Rachel is addicted too.I think she needs intervention. It is really bad! She starts playing it as soon as her students leave the classroom. That's just unbelievable. If you are willing to help me help her, let me know.

Enjoying the beautiful weather the LORD has given us this week. Hoping you enjoy the upcoming weeks.

Wow, it seems like forever since I last posted.

Well, Rick's birthday was on the 9th. We celebrated his birthday in SC before we came home. The 9th was a busy day for everyone. We had just gotten home from SC the day before so everyone had things to do to get caught up for our at home routines. The guys all had grass to cut and of course the suitcases needed to be unpacked. So, I just put the birthday gift on the table, the birthday banner up, and waited until Rick had a spare moment. Unfortunately his spare moment was not mine and he opened it without anyone around. Oh, well, it was still a surprise.

The 10th was the day scheduled for my Mom's pacer clinic. A phone call and check of the pacer and all was okay. She also had an eye doctor appointment the same day. She is slowly losing more of her sight.

The 11th found both Mom and I at the hairdressers to get our hair cut. Looked a little scraggly. Always nice when you first get it cut.

Rachel had all four wisdom teeth pulled on the 16th. She was loopy after getting them out and every time she took her pain pills. I think she slept away the week.

Then, on the 17th I worked in my garden. This was a definite disaster. I had worked on my garden in April before I left to go to SC for three weeks. When I came home it was too hot to get out there. Well, one thing lead to another and I just got around to working in it again. Still have some more to do and am waiting for a free day.

The 18th was Stephen's birthday. That was another grass cutting day but we were able to do dinner together and then we had gluten-free whoopie pies while Rick had a strawberry cupcake for the birthday treat. He also opened his gifts at that time.

The 19th was church cleaning day. Needed to deep clean the church as it hadn't been done since last October. Of course there was a ton of dirt in some spots from the old church building coming down in April. This cleaning was also put off because of visiting family. (I love my SC family!) My pantry, which is on the same floor we meet on for church was caked in dirt. That was a job in itself. Spent 13 hours cleaning everything. Insane! How much nicer it looks!!

Of course, there was an incentive to cleaning the church. We were having a 25th wedding anniversary celebration for my younger brother and sister-in-law. They renewed their vows, heard a gospel message, and then had food and desserts. It turned out very nice.

My new game addiction in Mahjong. I like this game because it makes me compete against myself to improve my score. Bejeweled is lots of fun, but can be frustrating when you can't get high scores. I still like playing it though

School started Monday for Isaiah and Stephen. Rachel will start her second year of teaching next Monday.

Okay, my blog is now up to date and I'm done rambling. Hope you all have a wonderful week!

Today we finished cleaning out and trimming the gardens here at Alicia's. Everything looks nice and neat.

The kids played outside all day today. Sadie, the new dog, loved the idea that the kids and adults were outside with her today. We must all have been crazy though because one of the time & temperature clocks said the temp was 99 degrees. Well, if you want to accomplish something here in the south you work through the heat.

Last night we started playing Boggle and Catch Phrase at 11:20pm. I guess we think best and have the most fun at this late hour.

So, today, Rick and I went to the Salvation Army store to look for used top sheets for the grandkids to make robes to wear to Bible school. While there, I spy a crocheted throw.

Now, I live in PA and the grandkids live in SC. Well, this throw looks very familiar. You see when my 34 yr. old daughter was 3 or 4 yrs. old I started to make her a throw. To make this story short I never finished it. Sent all unused yarn to my daughter several years ago. Thought I also gave her this unfinished throw.

Forward to 2010 and this throw is finished and for sale at this SC Salvation Army store. So, I buy it thinking it would be a good joke on my daughter. We get back to the house and I show her the sheets we bought and then I pull out the throw and ask her if she remembers it. Oh-h, the backfire on me. She does not recognize it. She says she thinks she remembers the colors but that's it. I asked her are you sure I didn't give it to you. She said she was sure.

Well, that means that the throw was given to Salvation Army in PA and somehow made its way to SC. What are the chances of that.