Thursday Thoughts v.8.30.12

Linking up with Sarah for another round of Thursday Thoughts. Here's what's on my mind this week:

{1}

Most exciting news ever...made reservations for a trip to Waco to see my daughter! She's starting her fifth year of grad school, and I think I've visited six times: I flew down to meet Sarah and her dad after they drove the U-Haul to Texas; husband and I drove there twice; we all spent one Thanksgiving at her home; my sister and I visited during spring break; and I flew down to play nursemaid after Sarah's tonsillectomy. This will be the first trip I get to have her all to myself while she's healthy. Husband has traveled to Waco much more often. They vacationed in San Antonio, traveled to Houston, and went to Disney World. Me? I get the day surgery clinic and a sick girl. If you can't tell, I'm really looking forward to some alone time with my baby, even if I do have to share her with her students!

{2}

Is anyone besides me sick of political ads and political rhetoric? Blame the other party for everything, because my party will fix everything that is wrong. Doesn't matter which party you favor, because they each slam the other. Too bad neither party can come up with realistic solutions to our very real problems. Just think, we only have 2 1/2 more months of this ridiculousness....before the cycle starts all over again.

{3}

Absolutely love our weather! It's my favorite time of the year here in the beautiful Pacific NW. Cool mornings with sunny afternoons, with temperatures in the low to mid-70's. Great for working outdoors, taking a morning walk or just enjoying the view. If my husband weren't sick, we'd be taking the convertible out for a nice drive, too.

{4}

My BFF drives a school bus, and since school starts next week she and I are going back-to-school shopping tomorrow. Not sure how much buying I'll do (I mean, how many retirement clothes do you really need?), but it should be a fun day. Many of the school districts in our area have already started, so hopefully the mall will not be as hectic as it was a week ago. Nothing like a girls' day out to start the weekend!

And what are you up to this week?

 

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Isn't it ironic?

Here what's new at the corner of my street

I had a few days to myself recently, and thought it might be a good time to attack some clutter. I refer to this as "de-crapping the house." I think I do a fairly good job of cleaning clutter during the course of other events, like rearranging the furniture, or painting a room, or when I absolutely need to make room for more...stuff. Unfortunately, I'm not quite as good at tackling jobs I would really rather not do, like clearing out that one room (OK, maybe two) where all the clutter leftover from the rest of the house stacks up. I'm talking about that room (or drawer, or box, or closet, or shelf) where you stash things to keep them out of the way and, more importantly, out of sight. However, in the case of cleaning my junk room, I think I've raised procrastination to a fine art, and I don't think I'll mess with my success. So I hit up my closet instead.

I don't recall where I got the idea to color-arrange my closet, but I'd bet it's from my daughter. Then again, if it were her idea, it would probably be in rainbow order. So who knows. Regardless, this system really works! I try to keep my clothes in order not only by color, but by sleeve length. This way my white sleeveless tops are all stored together next to my white short-sleeve shirts, with those next to my white long-sleeve tops. It's easy to find a particular top when I need it, and the color system makes coordinating an outfit a little easier. Think your outfit needs a pop of red? Check out the red section of your wardrobe!

My closet system makes cleaning the closet easier, too. How did I end up with so many brown tops? Or, how many white camisoles or tank tops do I really need? It took an hour or so, but I went through each and every item hanging in my closet, including the blazers/jackets and sweatshirts that I hang together without regard for color. I tried on every item I hadn't worn recently, and used a well lit, full-length mirror to evaluate whether the item should be kept or donated. I'll admit, I kept a few pieces that I'm not sure I'll wear in the future. And I also kept one or two items that I specifically recall made me feel wonderful the last time I wore them, regardless of how long ago that was. I'll probably be ready to donate some of these items the next time I de-crap my closet. All in all, I came up with quite a few items that are suitable for a new home elsewhere. Best of all, the next time I declare I have nothing to wear, I'll actually know better!

I also cleaned out two sweater drawers. I moved some holiday items to a designated box on the closet shelf, consolidated some items to store on another closet shelf, and even found a sweater or two that I had forgotten about. Bonus!

I finished the day by cleaning out my makeup drawer. How did all the free stuff from the dentist end up hidden at the back of this drawer? Who knew I had so many different lipsticks? Which begs the question, when is the last time I wore anything besides my same, old, standard lipstick? Hmmm. I got rid of every bit of old makeup, including those free samples I kept meaning to try. I tossed brushes that I no longer use, and more empty containers than I would care to admit. Can't believe how much stuff I dumped, and how roomy that drawer is now. Maybe I need to go shopping?

Plus the two new tubes I found later at the back of the drawer = 8

In the process of cleaning, I came to a startling realization. I found eight (8!) brand new tubes of lip balm. Husband traditionally buys lip balm for my Christmas stocking. (Why he thinks I like cherry lip balm is beyond me.) Including the two open lip balms in my bedroom, and the two in my purse, I have enough lip balm to last quite a few years. I've warned my girls that they can expect some of this bounty to be re-gifted, and also recommended they perform an intervention on my husband before we get over-run by the balm!

After all that work was done, with the garbage put out and the clothes folded and placed in the donation bags, I settled down on the couch to enjoy an evening of watching TV and playing on the computer. Just as I got good and comfortable, and strange thought crossed my mind. Hmm....my lips are kinda dry, I think I need some lip balm!

Isn't it ironic?

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Thursday Thoughts v.8.23.12

Linking up with Sarah for some Thursday Thoughts

[1]

Bought our kids (two cats) a new toy! They are not sure yet if they like it, but I'm betting they will eventually love it. Currently have it hidden in a corner of the living room behind a good sized plant, in view of the hummingbird feeders. We have two people and only two cats, so I don't believe we can be categorized as crazy cat people (yet).

Miss Dash checking out the view

[2]

Dropped off some clothes at the Goodwill this morning, so took my grandson inside to check out the books. He found a few, and so did I. Where else can you buy six books for under $10? Might be time to clean out my bookshelves, too.

[3]

Had a wonderful, fun time at the Mariner game the other day. It was a celebration of Felix Hernandez's perfect game, with more people in attendance than I have seen all year. 39,000 fans with 35,000 of them wearing the celebratory King Felix shirt. Woot woot!

Brother-in-law Ed, sister Heide (known for leaving snarky blog comments) and me

[4]

Seeing all the school supplies in the stores makes me nostalgic for back-to-school shopping with my kids. I absolutely love the smell of new school supplies, and I'm sure I enjoyed the shopping just as much as they did. Nothing like starting the school year with a fresh supply of spiral notebooks, perfect pencils, special pens, and immaculate crayons.

[5]

I won't go into intimate detail, but I bought two new supportive undergarments and couldn't be more pleased. I really love the Wacoal brand. I'll admit, they are a little spendy, but worth every penny because they fit (and support) so well. Even better, one of the items was 50% off since the color had been discontinued (what, no more black?!?) and I also had a coupon for $10 off. All in all, a very successful shopping trip.

And how is your week going?

 

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Little Bits About The Little Bits

After successfully completing Sarah's 15 Day Challenge, I pretty much fell off the blogosphere. No excuses, but it's been quite a busy summer. So I'll try to jump back into sharing little pieces of my life that I hope others might find just a bit interesting. But here's the catch, if you are typically a blog stalker (yes, I'm talking about YOU), please consider leaving a comment to let me know you've read my blog. You don't even have to log in, just choose the Anonymous option, but note your name at the end of the comment. It's that easy! Come on, please give me some incentive to keep blogging.

My summer has been chock full of grandkids, and you won't hear me complaining a bit! I had the pleasure of Kayden and Ava for an entire week while they were in soccer camp. We had a ball each day, even though the weather for two of those days was much too hot. I treated them to lunch and playtime at a McDonalds; we had a picnic outside on the lawn; we surprised their mommy at work; we had an picnic in the living room; and we went to the library to check out books. All in all, a fun-filled week. I am definitely not used to being around that much energy, much less for an entire week. Let's just say Grandma drank much wine every evening.

Ava and KK at soccer camp

I also got to watch Ava for a day or two while our son assisted my husband with a project. We made another trip to the library, and then packed a picnic lunch we took to the neighborhood playground. I think SHE wore ME out!

Ava was excited because we dressed the same!

As the coup de grace, both kids spent the night with me for the very first time! Unfortunately, they were disappointed to realize there wouldn't be any grandpa-time since my husband was out of town. Fortunately, I made all their favorite foods for dinner and that cheered them up. I took them to a huge play area at the county fairgrounds in an attempt to tire them out before bedtime, which didn't really work. But it tired me out, so I'm not really sure what went wrong? Kids shared a king-sized bed, and finally tuckered out around 9:30. Me...shortly thereafter. Ended our fun overnighter with Norwegian pancakes the next morning, which are always a big hit. Can't wait until our next overnight adventure!

Kayden making Grandma just a bit nervous

Norwegian pancakes just because they taste SO good!

 

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