Cleaning....never enough time

    Well, since my mother-in-law was diagnosed with cancer in September of last year, my house has pretty much been on hold.  Something had to give in our lives and since we were never home except to sleep, it was our house. (Though The dogs settled right in and made it their own place.) After finally getting past the funk of post funeral I have finally begun cleaning.  At the moment there is as much dog hair on me as there is on the dogs. I will have to have the drain-o on standby when I go take my shower.
      Today is one of those cleaning sessions when you feel like you are making more mess than you are cleaning up, never mind the fact that VA is in the middle of a major heatwave! Coltrane, our mixed breed, is like a three year old, every time you move he moves with you.  I am not even going to blog how many trash bags I have filled.  I have even thought about enlisting my teaching buddy Vicki's help.  If any one can organize, she can.  I am even still finding the token Christmas decoration here and there. (Vicki would know what to do!)
      I guess I have procrastinated long enough, I was on a "rest from heat" break ordered by my husband. Back to the dungeon and scrubbing floors that are in need of a good sanding and refinishing.  We gave up on working on the kitchen I have been without since last September.  I finally just purchased metal shelves at Lowes to hold items that were in cabinets that were removed almost a year ago. (Pre Nana's Cancer) At least this way we have cleared several critical areas in our house and have a counter-top exposed.  I think the wires sticking out of the wall provides a nice electrical ambiance. (yes, the are capped off)

     Hopefully, I will be able to post progress pictures in the fall......keep your fingers crossed. "All I want for Christmas is my kitchen back, my kitchen back, my kitchen back.  Gee if I could only have my kitchen back, then I could bake you Christmas cookies! (Ok-we will just say that last part was the result of heat exhaustion!)

Goodwill and Etsy FInds

     Several months ago I was looking through a Southern Living magazine and noticed where a designer had used vintage paint by numbers of dogs to form a vignette on a wall.  My imagination began to kick in overdrive and started a search for old dog paint by numbers.  I decided to check Goodwill and did not find any paint by number paintings but did discover an antique oil painting that actually still had the tag from the antique shop on the back for 95 cents!  I also discovered an old Florence Kroger print of a Cocker Spaniel for 55 cents.  They both had beat up old wooden frames which I spray painted gold.  My paint by number find was located on Etsy and scored for 14.99 though vintage paint by numbers usually run much higher.  I didn't know all those years ago I was creating such sought after art, if I had only know!

What a mess.....

     Have you ever started cleaning and about two hours into it you think it may look worse than when you started?  Today is my first day at home by myself for any length of time in over six months, needless to say six months of grime lies in our sun-room/office where I have decided to begin my cleaning spree.  My goal had been take one room a day over the next week, but I think I may need to modify that plan!
     I am currently taking my fifteen minute break to have a Minute Maid Soft Frozen Limeade Cherry and write my blog.
     The upside to this cleaning binge is I have probably found about ten dollars in change but if you calculate that out I think the most I will make in this room is about a 1.25 an hour.  Then if you take into account that we will probably need to order out because I will be too tired to cook, I will be in the red.
      I also found a really cute pair of shoes I had forgotten about and two pairs of dress shoes that my husband needed for his mother's funeral last week, instead we had to go out an purchase another pair.  Boy, this office is costing me a lot of money.  I have got to get organized, but I don't think "squiggle personalities" tend to be very organized.

• Of the 4 symbols, the Squiggle is the most unique and the most creative.

• You are an ORIGINAL always considering possibilities.

• Your mantra is get it done … differently.

• Your watchword is why. Why do we have to do it that way? What are our alternatives? You continually ask, 'What if?'  ( My husband always complains about this one. WHY WHY WHY)

• You are creative, imaginative, free form, like to have fun, think out-of-the-box.

• Your hero may be someone like Albert Einstein, Erma Bombeck, Walt Disney. (Definitely Walt Disney or Santa Claus, working for either one would be my dream job.)

• You see yourself as always looking for new ideas, new ways, new products. Others may sometimes consider you as a little strange or far-out. (My sister says I am eccentric but she said it nicely)

• As a child you preferred to draw your own original pictures to color. You often colored trees purple, leaves yellow and the sky green.

     As a child I was convinced I was an alien baby that was being raised by normal human beings which I was pretty sure I wasn't!  Though I was always scared the aliens would come back to get me! Definitely a check for being imaginative! 

SOOOOOOOO.......I guess this squiggle better get back to work and try really hard to be a little less squiggly.

And so it begins.....

     For over the past nine months we have been helping  my mother-in-law who was diagnosed with uterine cancer.  She recently passed away after a very difficult battle with the disease.  As we all know in times of crisis something has to give in your life and my poor house was one of those things. So, I begin my journey.  I am not sure at what moment the dirt and chaos took over, but I think it was sometime after the Christmas Holidays since I have found remnants of holiday decorations scattered here and there.
     As I sit at my computer and gaze through the house, I suddenly become overwhelmed where to begin my first attack.  I am a little worried that I may lose the first battle today because the piles of clutter seem to be highly organized in their counter attack.
     I did discover one really neat cleaning trick that saved my hours of scrubbing in an old porcelain bathtub! Very rarely do those "miracle cleaning tricks" work, but this one definitely did.

• 12 ounces white vinegar
• 12 ounces liquid, blue dawn detergent

Directions:

1. 1
   Heat vinegar in microwave until hot and pour into squirt bottle.
2. 2
   Add the Dawn soap. Put the lid on and gently shake to incorporate.
3. 3
   You now have a powerful cleaning product that will melt soap scum and tub and shower buildup, clean sinks, appliances and just about anything. Just spray it on, scrub, rinse and be amazed. For tough soap scum build-up, spray the mixture on and allow it to sit as long as overnight. Then, scrub and rinse.

I allowed mine to sit one hour.

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/tub-and-shower-magic-434275#ixzz1yWfR2ZPf

Dream Kitchen

I think I would like mine to be a little more mixture of vintage pieces, where I feel this one leans a little towards looking modern, but this id definitely the direction I want to go with the pieces I have purchased.

My Dream Job

Well, it is summer and I guess it is time that I make my futile attempt at blogging.  Like every teacher, my summer's are usually filled with cramming in all the things that I would love to do year round.  I was asked by a financial adviser what I would like to do after I retire, now since his suit probably cost more than more wardrobe for a week, I was hesitant to say, "Well, I would really like to explore junkyards and create new furniture."........I decided to mumble that I really had not made any kind of decisions.  Of course the minute we got home I was off to claim an old Philco refrigerator to restore and use in my remodeled kitchen. The model below is similar to my newest treasure.  I am afraid I was not much help to my husband getting it up the basement steps, but I did say a stream of cuss words in hopes that it would help lighten his load.  Poor guy, it was his birthday.......

Hidden Treasures

Well anyone that knows me, knows I like finding a diamond in the rough.  Something about objects that people have discarded fascinates me, especially when they just didn't take the time to take care of the item.  I have been having a pretty rough week and decided to stop by Goodwill while waiting to meet my son.  Pushed back on a shelf I found a very tarnished sterling silver sugar bowl and creamer set by Sheffield Silver Co., 2 sterling silver bowls by Reed & Barton, and four silver spoons all bound together by packaging tape for 9.95.  The pieces were so black that I could not read the inscriptions on the bottom but for 9.95 took the chance the were what I thought they were.  So with a little elbow grease I cleaned and polished them to discover their beauty.  If only Bobbie Plott could have witnessed by labor.  I remember working for her as a teenager at her Gift Shoppe.  She swore to my mother I quit because I had to polish silver!   (LOL, no I got a better paying job and had spent years polishing for my mother....I actually had it down to an art.) Ben did some quick online searches for me and apparently I made my money back with one spoon so I am happy. I also discovered an old antique frame with lots of gilding.  So with less then 20 dollars spent I ended my exasperating week with my little treasure.  Not sure what I will do with the silver, keep it or sell it to someone that will give it a loving home.

Stained Glass Experience

Stained glass has always been on my bucket list of things to learn.  At my age I figure if I don't start now, I may not get them done!  I started out by buying Ben, who also has always wanted to learn, classes for our 25th Anniversary.  Six months later I decided to let him show me how to cut class.  I actually had had a few experiences cutting classes and soldering when I made jewelry a few years ago.  Now as anyone knows before starting a project with your husband, ground rules must be established.  You see Ben approaches everything from the technical viewpoint, and I from the artistic, not always a good combination, especially when we both tend to be very passionate in our approaches.

Ground Rules
1. No yelling.
2. People have their own way of doing things.
3. And Ben's way is not the only way.  LOL

I found cutting glass frustrating at times but loved foiling and soldering. Ben was very patient as he saw feet of glass being ruined by not cutting correctly and surprisingly except for the slight glistening of tears he managed to say it's okay and for me to keep trying.  I am already thinking about what I can do next so I guess that is a good sign!  As far as the ground rules, Ben did very well, except he did grab the soldering iron a few times to show me a better way....<while I am thinking he is very brave taking a 700 degree object out of my hand to show me a better way.>  I think we approach soldering a totally different way, LOL.  I got the "your painting, painting, painting" remark about 3 times.  All in all our bonding over stained glass went pretty well.  I am fortunate to have my best friend as my husband even though I know I make his jaw twitch at times.

Weathermen and Snowmen

Well, I definitely have the heart of a teacher.....Christmas break is coming to an end and I am already checking weather forecasts for snow.  Not sure if it is the teacher or kid in me that loves a good snow day. I had even purchased several  flannel blankets that went on sale 50% off after Christmas in anticipation of cuddling under them on a snowy day! As I went to bed last night they were calling for a 50% chance of snow on Monday and Tuesday.  I got up this morning and they had changed it to partly sunny.  Now does this still mean the other half could be partly snowy?  I think it is cruel how they play with our emotions.  I had already made my plans for how I would spend the day!  Well, if I can't build a real snowman I guess I will have to make some.  I currently have the body parts of three potential snow dolls scattered on my end table in the den.  It currently looks like they have met with some horrific snowplow accident. In keeping with my New Years Resolution number 2, I have resolved that when the TV is on I will be working on something creative and artistic.  Since this is only day two I am off to a great start.  Let's hope I can stick to it.  As far as the diet (Resolution 1) goes, I was just walking through the house looking for leftover Christmas snacks, since all I could find was one Nutter Butter cracker, the diet appears to be going well today, but San Juan reopens tonight and after a week without Mexican........I could fall off the wagon soon. What about resolution number 3?  Well, so far no one has asked me to do anything major other than get them a coke out of the refrigerator, which I did.
I have been busy working on establishing my Etsy shop for the past two days, will let you know when the grand opening of Sonny & Son will be...probably when I finish my girls!  I know people probably wonder about the name, if you have read the sidebar you have probably figured it out.  It is a little tribute to my dad, Sonny Lockard.  I was named after an ins. policy he did for a couple's little boy, my name was going to be Shawn whether I was girl or boy.....though I secretly think he had his fingers crossed for the boy. My suspicions where slightly confirmed when I received gifts such as matchbox cars, race track sets, and a G.I. Joe to go with Barbie!  As a result I decided to name my little enterprise Sonny & Son.....also Sonny & Dau. just didn't have the same ring to it.  There was an up side to all these slightly male oriented toys.  I tend to be very mechanical in thinking, I love to fix and make things, and never fuss when my husband wants to buy a new tool.