Since there's so much to say and I'm not sure where to start, I guess the easiest thing would be a list. Here goes:
~ On August 25th Nate & Shawna had settlement on their "new-to-them" house which they just moved into last week. The house was a fixer-up place that needed quite a bit of work to be livable for them. So, up until last Tuesday when we helped them move in, we were over there at least a few nights a week helping clean, tear down walls, paint, install closets, clear their yard, etc, etc. At first it seemed overwhelming but it's been really cool to see the house transform into a very cute, livable place. If I had some pictures I'd post them but I don't. Maybe I'll get some from Shawna later on.
~ One week in mid-August I decided I was going to completely re-do my basement to make it a usable and inviting storage space - a project I had been putting off ever since getting married. Our basement was old, smelly, dirty and creepy according to me. I very much avoided even opening the basement door, and I would only go down there in broad daylight while Jon was home - even that only happened a couple times since living here. I know, you all think I'm crazy, but you didn't see my basement before!
While I was motivated I wasted no time. Jon's mom graciously offered to help as well. We hauled everything out that was down there. Then we vacuumed and washed down everything. The ceiling was unfinished and not very pretty looking so we stapled up heavy duty plastic to keep dirt and insulation from falling down; it also gave the room a much nicer feel. Next we painted the walls, floor and stairs. And finally I went out and bought some heavy duty storage shelves for all around and filled them up with all kinds of things I had been storing elsewhere in our little house.
Unfortunately I didn't take pictures before we started, but I did take some mid-process and finish pics (below). It really looks like a different basement! I actually go down there quite often now, without any fear. It's so nice to have the extra storage space too (you'll learn more about why in another post). I still have a few more little things to do in the basement to finish it up, like fix some of the plastic on the ceiling and hang a fabric curtain all around so I can't see in the crawl space, but for the most part it's done. Here are some pics:
MID-WAY (we had already cleaned and painted the walls)
AFTER
~ Another thing that's been keeping me busy is watching my cousin Rhonda's son Aaron every Thursday from 8:30 am - 4:40 pm. Aaron is now about 3 months old but I started watching him when he was just over 2 months. He's a big boy and sometimes quite a handful but I've been learning a lot and gaining more experience having a baby around all day one day a week. I'd post some pictures but Jon's been taking our camera to work every day so I never have it around when Aaron's here.
~ We went for a week vacation to Myrtle Beach 2 weeks ago but I'm going to write another post with pictures of that so I won't say anything more right now. Stay tuned!
~ The rest of my garden really took off after I posted the last post. I had tomatoes and peppers galore for a while! With the tomatoes I canned 28 quarts of fresh tomato sauce. I'm hoping that will last us until next year for making homemade spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce and any other recipe I find. As for the peppers, we had a lot of habaneros as well as bell peppers which I left on the plants till they turned red. I washed, cut and froze a few quart sized bags of red bell peppers to use in all kinds of recipes throughout the winter. The habaneros were for Jon and he used them to make two different types of EXTREMELY HOT hot sauce. He also dried some and ground them down to a powder to sprinkle on food. The powder is so strong that when he uses it to sprinkle on food some of it becomes airborne and if you're right near him you feel it on your lips and in your nose! I stay clear of it and don't even like touching the jar. :) The picture above is our stash of tomato sauce and hot sauces. Which are all stored down in our newly re-done basement of course.
~ The week before we left for Myrtle Beach two of our friends, Amanda Reinford & Steve Heebner got engaged and they asked Jon and I both to be in their wedding party. I was asked if I would be Amanda's Matron of Honor and I gladly excepted! Amanda was my maid of honor for my wedding so it's really neat. All the little details that come along with being Matron of Honor have been occupying some of my time these last few weeks as well. I love it though! Weddings are so much fun - especially when you're in them and you know the people getting married. Manda & Steve's wedding is in early January so there's not long to wait!
~ Lastly something that's really been taking up a lot of my time these days is learning to MAKE money shopping at CVS, Walgreens & Rite Aid. You may have noticed a little while back the new link button that appeared on my side bar to the left. It has the picture of the little piggy bank and it says "Money Saving Mom" on it. That is the blog that started it all for me, and got me hooked on saving money, stock piling, and shopping at drugstores. There are so many more details to share and great bargains to tell you about that I'll dedicate another post specifically for this latest hobby of mine. :)
I think that's just about everything. At least all the main things I've been doing. Since this post is getting so long I'm going to end abruptly here and I'll start on the next post right away!
No comments:
Post a Comment