Good morning ladies,
It's minus 4 degrees F right now. Good thing the sun is shining brightly or it would be really cold in the house. I guess I'm going to have to fire up the oven and bake something to throw more warmth into the main living area. We stopped at the fireplace shop yesterday to inquire about the part for our heater / fireplace that was ordered early November and "should be in" around Thanksgiving. The guy said he hasn't gotten the part yet and he will call us when he gets it. My cousin says - this is the Northwoods where you wait for EVERYTHING so hold your pants on, but we could REALLY use the boost that this fireplace would add to heating this house, and it won't do us much good to get it in May. Sorry I haven't been posting, have had a serious case of flit-itis - flitting from one thing to another without really completing something. And couple that with talking with DH and then deciding to go completely off course and tackle something else. So today I am back to a fixed list of stuff to do which includes some Christmas items.
The man came to work on the furniture. He is going to get a catalogue of hardware and see if he can match up the front plate / fake door pulls to fix the cedar chest. He also worked on the table and buffet and put what he called an old fashioned hand rubbed finish on both pieces. If you can believe it, it involves steel wool, polish and water. It covered the fine scratches all right, will scratches all over the surface. But he said he has been doing this since 1976, was taught wood crafting by old school masters and in time with routine polishing, the look of the table will soften to a nice sheen and the scratches will disappear. We will trust him on that. In the meantime I covered them both with holiday table runners and placemats Seriously, I think this will work out and I know this man wasn't anything like the sort of service we got in the south.
Mel - so are you the only person that is "on call" for the nightly alarms? Soon the lack of sleep / interuptions will take it's toll on you. And considering the demographics of your building, probably fair to say that there will most often be at least one nightly occurance. DH found a box of Christmas wrapping paper while unpacking other stuff. You are welcome to it, there's more than I will ever need including some kids stuff that I haven't used in years
Laura - I sort of like the idea of not only including what one would like for gift suggestions, but more importantly what they would not want. For instance, I am really fussy about scents and because of this, I really don't like bath products or colognes unless it's the few things I can stand without a headache. The really perfumey stuff like jasmine or honeysuckle gives me a raging headache. So I think it's a pretty good idea, especially with a group of people that don't really know each other that well. I'm with you on not liking the bar scene for parties either - or crowded restaurants too. Hope they find some place that works for everyone. Guess in the old days when they had "real" office parties at hotel ballrooms with live music and booze and food, we were too busy getting blitzed to worry about talking to people.
Shad - how nice that you will get to visit with your friend Chris again. Forgot she had moved back to NZ. Is she doing well enough to get around? I'll bet you are excited about going back and seeing people. Sounds like you plan to do a little travelling and sight seeing too. I will have to invite my SIL up when you visit - both of you like to be on the move. I hope you have a wonderful vacation - it's well deserved.
Ceejay - I can't imagine the nerve of those crazy women knocking on your door so late. It's good that they clean well but gotta wonder if it's worth it when they get stirred up again seeing you. How did the decorating come out?
Oh yay - DH just announced that we are going to use the proceeds from the sale of the TN house to pay off the WI house. No mortgage for us Although it was nice seeing that big bank balance for a while Of course that will change in May of next year when we have to start paying for health insurance to the tune of far more than our monthly mortgage was.
Michelle - hope you have some yummy books in your lastest cache. Great idea on using the library. We have yet to get to ours - looks like it's a nice one and is on the list for us to check out soon. Sorry that DH's shot did not work as well as yours did but you know those things can be so hit or miss too. Sometimes what worked 3 years ago doesn't do much this time around. Hopefully he will get some relief - as you said, it's pretty darn hard to be working and doing around the house stuff AND try to sit and get your rest in. I would love to see some of your holiday decorations - how about a few pictures from you sister?
Annie - I'm sure you are busy - it is a hassle when you can't post during the daytime. We are thinking of you - hoping you can stay under the radar away from Mr. Military at work and just keeping your head down so that you can march home to Little Monkey and your happy family.
to all - I'd better get dressed and get on with my list of to dos.