MEMORIAL DAY MONDAY

[DeeClutter]

Don't know as "Happy" Memorial Day is appropriate, but do have a good day, while we remember World Wide what our freedoms have cost.

I had a 'decent' night's sleep and just got up a short time ago. Dh has the back part of the deck stained & has been doing the porch rails and bottom.

We had the nicest of all situations last night. Begins my story (or actually dh's): A couple walked up our front & she asked dh if he was T--. She immediately hugged him & he was a little dumbfounded until they introduced themselves & he noticed the guy's arm! (I know I told you about dh's life-saving episode a few weeks ago). I've wondered from time to time how this fella was doing. They came to the campground to visit his boss and to find dh to thank him, in person, for saving his life. We had a wonderful chat and lots of hugs and promises to stay in touch. They then gave dh a lovely note with a $50 gift card -which was totally unneccesary. We are all pretty amazed that he's standing there albeit with stitches from his wrist to his shoulder & a bit misshapen arm at the top but oh so wonderful to even be here. They also had taken some veins from his leg to piece back the artery. Can't begin to tell you how it touched us. He has a long ways to go with rehab.

Dh never did find his $80 yesterday, but we're pretty certain it fell out of his pocket at the convenience store and someone else picked it up. Of course when we stopped to ask they knew nothing about it. That's ok, we've accepted that (could have been a lot worse) and dh has already been rewarded with almost the entire amount. The $50 from last night and he found a $10 bill when he was checking my tires. (Found money does go right into a 'missions' fund however so that's all good.) At least it's there if anyone goes to the store asking for it and we'd very willingly give it to whomever it belonged to.

Think I'll surprise dh with some bacon (turkey) and eggs. Don't usually feel great enough or he's not around. He does have to go to town in a couple of hours for their parade.

[Lynlee]

Sending prayers for all who have suffered from the effects of wars. The ripple effects linger long.

Today I managed to fix my front blind. I needed to rethread the cord after I cut out the frayed/broken part.

yoga. I have 6 wks left of my membership for classes at the gym. A different instructor has ramped up the intensity, and doesn't have the props, blocks etc. The room doesn't suit me, small, smells of rubber matting often, stuffy. I am not managing so I'll be looking for another class.

load of washing in and away, another set to the line. Put some duct tape on the laundry basket handles as they annoy my hands.

Great news of the man's recovery Dee. Praying for a steady rehab for him.

[Harmony]

That's a lovely story, Dee. DH once lost $100 bill in the drugstore. We'd gone in to get a card and he had it in his little front shirt pocket and pfft! it was gone. Never was returned. Maybe someone needed it more than we did. I found $10 in the gutter in front of the post office once and reported it but nobody ever came in to claim.

Anyway, DH and helper are at jobsite but they are stopping as the place he needed to get parts from is closed for the holiday. Usually stores like that are open on a holiday.

Need to make a plan for today:
Couple pieces of ironing.
Gosh that can't be all for today, can it?

[helia]

Good morning all! I slept for about 10 hours last night. I think I was tired. I was actually sore last night after doing some yardwork. Seems pretty lame to me, but maybe I'm not used to bending over or something.

Helia, I could never be as social as you are. I'd need a rubber suit!

Yeah - me too sometimes. LOL! I am an introvert at my core. I have become more tolerant of social situations over time out of exposure and necessity, but they do tire me out in the end.

Today is dd16's birthday!! I need to do some shopping for a gift for her. Also, need to go to the groc. store for the fixings for her meal. Also want to drop off the band uniform stuff at the home of the kind parent who is heading up the returns for me on Friday. And maybe go to H ome D epot for new door mats, flowers for my barrel (I never got to the farmers market; maybe I'll go to a local nursery, but that adds one more errand to my list. . ), and a full length mirror which dd16 is requesting for her bday for her design and sewing projects. I wonder if HD would have that?

Dd16 and friend left the kitchen a mess after making lemon blueberry scones last night. How am I supposed to lose weight with such yummy baking projects happening here every few days?? It was choc. chip cookies earlier this week. I think she finds baking therapeutic. Wish we could charge $$ from her future dh's family for our baking, designing, sewing, constructing, always busy w/ a project (a bit like dh in that) dd16! LOL! She is also our neatest child - so here's to hoping she and dfriend will clean up their mess this morning.

OK, off to the games I go.

[helia]

That is an inspiring story, Dee.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Dee, thanks for the great start to the day!

Helia: charging future in-laws' families for your daughter is illegal. And culturally, normally you have to pay to take her off your hands. So her skills would just reduce the amount you'd have to pay! Maybe she'll be able to attract a better candidate with her skills.

Helia: I'm an introvert who plays an extrovert. You are right, it is tiring.

I'm sick right now. Not sure what is wrong but my body has definitely rebelled. Dinner didn't sit well last night and I went to bed with a vomit bag next to me after having taken Tums and Xantac. Slept slightly elevated and slept well compared to lately. I had everything open so it got lovely and cool in the bedroom so that helped dh sleep better as well. We got out of bed at 9! But my tummy is still twitchy. I'm having green tea this morning and chocolate but neither feels good.

I couldn't breathe in enough for singing longer passages yesterday and last night and today my stomach feels a bit hard so I'm thinking it wasn't dinner that started this. I'll try and stop eating junk and let nature run whatever it is out of my system.

Dh wants to take the evening off so we will pack the 10 boxes this afternoon. He likes my goal of being almost 100% packed by June 6 so that there won't be a last minute rush. We put aside the box for the glass kitchen table last night. We are short painting boxes. I thought we had 8 but it turns out we have 5, three paired ones that telescope (so the large painting are now packed, and 2 unpaired that will be used for smaller paintings. I'm running out of bedding to wrap things in (much to my relief since I felt stupid with so many sheets and blankets piled randomly but now the pile is getting quite small.)

Tomorrow the bikes go in for servicing and dh has a hair cut. The next day will be packing things we'll need at the apartment from the first moment and then the next day we get the keys and start moving in. Things will be happening quickly from this point onwards, perhaps that's why my tummy is rebelling.

[OKay]

Good Morning!

Menu -
B - Oatmeal, blueberry, apple muffins, OJ
L - Grilled Cheese sandwiches, fruit cocktail, mixed greens
S - Pinto Beans, garden onions, peppers, cornbread


Holiday - Memorial Day
** go to DFIL & my Grandpa graves - put flags out
** go to National Cemetery
** walk the roads in cemetery with LO and discuss the reason for Memorial Day

Focus =
** Closets - declutter, organize & inventory
** 4pm - 5pm time slot
** Steps 6000+
** Bed #3 in garden (onions)

Watch Happy Feet movie with LO after lunch to see if that downtime will refresh him without a nap.

Next up 15 minute timer =
** LO playing Lego's
** Me doing CFO cards

[DeeClutter]

No doubt, Kathryn. Just remember to picture us on the sidelines, cheering: "Go Kathryn, go Ken!" That light at the end of the tunnel is ALMOST in sight.

Dh has gone to town for the Memorial Day parade -he's fire policeman today & will have traffic rerouted/stopped. We're going to ds-R's for a picnic later this afternoon. Reminds me I need to pull sausage from the freezer.

[helia]

LOL Kathryn! Yes, yes, I know, though maybe I think some cultures have it backward with the dowry thing. Good thing I'm not a cultural anthropologist with that comment. . . All tongue in cheek here. We've joked that dd16 was born during the wrong century; she would have made a great pioneer woman - though that was a hard life and I'd not necessarily wish that life on anyone. Hoping her industry will pay off in other ways in this century.

Um I'm certainly not very industrious. I've just spent time looking through the yearbook. I'm off now to get something done. I have also done some emails and ordered some crop pants for myself.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

I have a feeling that the movers will be moving yearbooks although I really meant to cut out the pages that applied to me (and my mom's pages) and toss the remainder. Now I have no clue where that pile of yearbooks is.

We noticed we'd lost a box of paintings although I found one of the missing ones this morning (it was on the wall!) so it is possible the other painting is in a box labeled "Fragile - Living room" and in with the photo collage pictures. We'll find out later. We left two things up on the wall - ds' giant NYC framed poster (because the movers aren't moving that) and the giant framed photo of Whitepoint rocks he did for me. It is up on the wall over the kitchen table and is pretty flimsy so we'll move that ourselves later this week.

Now that photos are done, the remaining decorations on the walls and shelves look out of place so that will be box #1 today.

Meant to mention that you all misunderstood my post about Mad Men last night. I meant it one way, but you read it a different way (my fault for the confusion.) We watched the last episode on Netflix of Mad Men (season 6), not that we had watched the last episode of the last season of Mad Men. Coincidentally the last episode of the first half of the last season of Mad Men broadcast on cable last night, but we don't have cable so are always far behind on things like this. But that's why so many were correcting me that there will be more episodes since the second half of season 7 is to broadcast in spring 2015.

Last week I posted pictures of the pram on FB and this morning my nephew's former nanny posted a comment on the photo! I love that she's still in touch with him. He was nine when his mom died and didn't have a nanny at that point (because my sister was home when he'd get home from school) but after my sister died, she came back for after school care for a few years to ease him through that period of his life. When I posted the picture and the comment (I remember taking him in the pram to see the Queen on Parliament Hill) I hadn't realized that there was someone else around that would remember pushing him in the pram. That is a plus side to FB.