Yesterday we washed the whole back of the house! Special trip to Home Depot to buy bleach and a pump spray can (which when we got it out and put together said, "do not use with bleach" but we did anyway). Took screens off, washed them, washed windows and doors, sprayed and then washed the house. Messed around with plants and also started cleaning out the area covered with rocks behind the pool where the pool equipment is. Nice sunny day, not too hot. Afterwards was very tired and lolled around in the spa and pool for a bit then blew off cooking the chicken (must do today). omg, also cleaned the outside fan which was a pain because even tho I was on a ladder, it was over my head. Dean planted some parsley because all but one pathetic plant has died. Too much going on vacation and OH not keeping up with things while it was super hot.
Today, a riding lesson. Last time we really worked on posting trot and I started doing much better. I need to go practice by myself a few times ($25 each time) but hesitate since W is such a pain when RI is not there. Maybe Monday. We discussed the carriage driving and I told her I still want to do it but had been concentrating on riding because of not wanting to be the worst one in the quadrille. We are only going to do the Q once a month. Right now one of her horses is lame and so she doesn't want to exclude anyone from riding - who would it be??
After all, I am succeeding in getting OH to help me with projects and have pretty much convinced him that we should make a push to get all the inside work done now and not stretch it out. I mean why not get it done?? This will be mainly a master bathroom remodel. Once that is done and the shoe racks are taken out of the closet floors, we can get the new carpeting (already picked out). Oh, and I want to have a headboard made and get new night tables and lamps for my room and then paint the whole room green instead of just one wall.
On the bathroom, we are undecided about leaving the existing tub and just getting new tiling and fixtures or taking the tub out and having a nice big shower. That is what we would like to do but for resale of the house, that would leave 4 bedrooms with only one bathtub. The sink area will be demolished and a silestone countertop with undermounted sinks will be used and then all the cabinetry will be redone to my special design. This will have deep drawers to keep all my stuff in and clear off the countertop. whew, I must come up with a design (have 2 magazine pics that are perfect except for they leave no room for a waste basket and that is where ours has to go).
Made plane reservations to go to Florida for the condo closing. OH coming too - that will be nice except that I will have to sleep on the couch and he can have the double bed. Last time we slept in it together but it was not very comfortable with 2 people!
For my parents, the aides and Jules seem to be working out nicely. We have pretty much decided to leave them in Fl. They are actually comfortable there and it will set them back to move them to a new place (where they may be separated).
That's all folks!!
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Thursday, September 13, 2007
moving forward
What did I get done today???
1. Called a landscaper and he came over to look at the yard. Will get back to us in 2 weeks.
2. Sent Terri an email telling her to go ahead with my projects: breakfast room curtains and chair covers and new cushions for the old wooden chair.
3. Called electrician who will come out next Tuesday to install a new fan in the bathroom, fix (I hope) the under the cabinet light in the kitchen and take a look at the BR lamp.
4. Called a contractor to come give us some kind of ball park figure on re-doing the master bath. He will come out Oct. 2nd.
YAY!!
After all that is done I can get new carpeting upstairs!! omg
Cleaned the house today and made veal chops for dinner.
1. Called a landscaper and he came over to look at the yard. Will get back to us in 2 weeks.
2. Sent Terri an email telling her to go ahead with my projects: breakfast room curtains and chair covers and new cushions for the old wooden chair.
3. Called electrician who will come out next Tuesday to install a new fan in the bathroom, fix (I hope) the under the cabinet light in the kitchen and take a look at the BR lamp.
4. Called a contractor to come give us some kind of ball park figure on re-doing the master bath. He will come out Oct. 2nd.
YAY!!
After all that is done I can get new carpeting upstairs!! omg
Cleaned the house today and made veal chops for dinner.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
WE volunteered again at the RDA last night. Not quite so awfully hot but still -
I side walked 3 different kids. I am not totally happy with this place. It is kind of by the seat of your pants kind of organized. Plus, one horse called Sundance was practically gasping for breath and they still used him (after hosing him off). I was afraid he would drop dead and crush me. Also, the instructor for this student and the other side walker were very negative. The child riding was about 5 years old, I'm not sure she could speak (maybe tho) and had a plastic tube clipped onto her shirt by a cord that she was supposed to keep in her mouth (her "chewey" ugh!!). The problem was that whenever she got excited, she would bounce up and down on the saddle (lets face it, she didn't weigh much) and so the instructor and sw kept saying, "NO!! No Bouncing! NO!!" omg, so I started saying "SIT". Finally I just said, "Don't say the B word, just say SIT". Who am I to tell the people in charge what to do?? The only one with common sense at least! Whe I said "sit" to her, I would put on hand on her so she was firmly in the saddle. But it got worse, not only did they try to start saying "sit" but keep slipping back into "no, no bouncing", but practically everything else warrented a firm "No, No, No." She was only on the horse for about 20 minutes since she finally took her Very Ill-Fitting helmet off. Then they stupidly threatened her that if she didn't let us put the helmet back on she had to get off the horse, so of course that is what happened. If I had been the parent, I would have been furious. A totally negative experience.
I thought the instruction, on the whole to be almost non-existant. Granted, they are not really learning to ride, but in order to get any therapy out of just sitting and walking around, why not encourage the kids to sit up and look where they are going? The ones working on balance should be putting their arms out to the side, looking up, sideways and back, touching the mane and behind the saddle, etc. I am very disappointed.
On the plus side, OH sidewalked a very disabled boy about 12 years old who talked non-stop and was screamingly funny!!! Everything he said (told to me later by OH) was a riot. At the end, he said he was going to do an aerobic dismount - hilarious because he could barely sit up and could not walk.
Lets see, otherwise I am totally wasting my time. Spent all of Saturday sitting in/by the pool reading Georgette Heyer (omg, again). My stuff is all over the house and I have not been picking up after myself. I have worked on my needlepoint horse and all the background is done and now I have to work on the borders and the horses' manes.
Today is Hair Cut and Color Day! I'm terrified as I cut all the back off my hair last week and now it is pretty short. I just dread the stylist "evening it out" and making it way too short. And why can't anyone just copy a fucking picture and cut my hair the way I want it??? If I even see thinning shears - well, he'd better say his prayers. I do have some ideas for color that I think will be super cute.
OH has lost 7 pound in almost 2 weeks on our diet and I have only lost one or two. Could it be because he weighs twice as much as me but I eat the same amount as he does?? brainiac.
The Florida condo has been sold. It went on the market last year for $200K, was reduced to $175, finally listed with new agents for $143 and sold for $138. I don't care because the whole condo thing is driving everyone crazy. Plus ma has now misplaced the coupon payment booklet.
Ma has been to a neurologist, got only about 1/2 the questions in some kind of test right (got president right but not VP, couldn't figure out 100-7, etc.), and also had an EEG and MRI. We now await a report which will be sent to N. WE are leaning towards leaving them in Florida but are still not sure what would be best to do. Any move at this point is certain to set them back mentally. NOt that they have far to go.
that's all for now.
I side walked 3 different kids. I am not totally happy with this place. It is kind of by the seat of your pants kind of organized. Plus, one horse called Sundance was practically gasping for breath and they still used him (after hosing him off). I was afraid he would drop dead and crush me. Also, the instructor for this student and the other side walker were very negative. The child riding was about 5 years old, I'm not sure she could speak (maybe tho) and had a plastic tube clipped onto her shirt by a cord that she was supposed to keep in her mouth (her "chewey" ugh!!). The problem was that whenever she got excited, she would bounce up and down on the saddle (lets face it, she didn't weigh much) and so the instructor and sw kept saying, "NO!! No Bouncing! NO!!" omg, so I started saying "SIT". Finally I just said, "Don't say the B word, just say SIT". Who am I to tell the people in charge what to do?? The only one with common sense at least! Whe I said "sit" to her, I would put on hand on her so she was firmly in the saddle. But it got worse, not only did they try to start saying "sit" but keep slipping back into "no, no bouncing", but practically everything else warrented a firm "No, No, No." She was only on the horse for about 20 minutes since she finally took her Very Ill-Fitting helmet off. Then they stupidly threatened her that if she didn't let us put the helmet back on she had to get off the horse, so of course that is what happened. If I had been the parent, I would have been furious. A totally negative experience.
I thought the instruction, on the whole to be almost non-existant. Granted, they are not really learning to ride, but in order to get any therapy out of just sitting and walking around, why not encourage the kids to sit up and look where they are going? The ones working on balance should be putting their arms out to the side, looking up, sideways and back, touching the mane and behind the saddle, etc. I am very disappointed.
On the plus side, OH sidewalked a very disabled boy about 12 years old who talked non-stop and was screamingly funny!!! Everything he said (told to me later by OH) was a riot. At the end, he said he was going to do an aerobic dismount - hilarious because he could barely sit up and could not walk.
Lets see, otherwise I am totally wasting my time. Spent all of Saturday sitting in/by the pool reading Georgette Heyer (omg, again). My stuff is all over the house and I have not been picking up after myself. I have worked on my needlepoint horse and all the background is done and now I have to work on the borders and the horses' manes.
Today is Hair Cut and Color Day! I'm terrified as I cut all the back off my hair last week and now it is pretty short. I just dread the stylist "evening it out" and making it way too short. And why can't anyone just copy a fucking picture and cut my hair the way I want it??? If I even see thinning shears - well, he'd better say his prayers. I do have some ideas for color that I think will be super cute.
OH has lost 7 pound in almost 2 weeks on our diet and I have only lost one or two. Could it be because he weighs twice as much as me but I eat the same amount as he does?? brainiac.
The Florida condo has been sold. It went on the market last year for $200K, was reduced to $175, finally listed with new agents for $143 and sold for $138. I don't care because the whole condo thing is driving everyone crazy. Plus ma has now misplaced the coupon payment booklet.
Ma has been to a neurologist, got only about 1/2 the questions in some kind of test right (got president right but not VP, couldn't figure out 100-7, etc.), and also had an EEG and MRI. We now await a report which will be sent to N. WE are leaning towards leaving them in Florida but are still not sure what would be best to do. Any move at this point is certain to set them back mentally. NOt that they have far to go.
that's all for now.
Sunday, September 02, 2007
September 2nd! Yesterday was my mother's birthday. She is now 88 and dementia is taking over. "If you have a dollar and you spend 7 cents, how much do you have left?" Sorry, it's NOT 3 dollars!!!!
I have now arranged to take 2 private lessons a week and join in the quadrille on Sundays. Last Sunday I rode a horse called Faja who was trailered in by another student named Diedra. Faja was an arab mare and very nice. We were all constantly screwed up the whole time because of miscommunication and bad riding. heh
OH and I both went to volunteer at the therapeutic riding center. I was a side walker for a little boy about 6 years old. I had to stay away from the horse as otherwise, he would jump off into your arms. He did fine but it was very hot. Note to self: next time get on the inside of the horse so i'm not running around when he trots. Parker (the kid riding) was chewing the loose end of the helmet strap and all of a sudden I noticed that blood was dripping down his chin.
Dean started out leading a horse and then when the designated leader actually showed up, he changed to be a side walker. One girl in his class fell off but was not hurt. Rudy the pony spooked when a bucket dropped. I think the whole thing is kind of chancy - much opportunity for accidents.
Bought all new dishes at anthropologie. Must get some glasses also. Need juice glasses and medium glasses. Cleaned out entire kitchen. The only things left are cleaning the hood vent grill and the actual oven (just need to turn it to clean, lol). I also cleaned out the downstairs bathroom drawers and underneath the sink and one drawer of the planning desk in the breakfast room. I'm just doing this little by little when I feel like it.
We started kind of the south beach diet. No starch for 2 weeks. Today I ate:
-scrambled eggs with broccoli and cauliflower
-a can of tuna packed in water with celery, parsley and diet mayo; pickles; and an ounce of cheddar cheese
-a hamburger with low-fat swiss cheese; a salad with lettuce, tomato, cuke, feta cheese and kalamati olives
I'm completely stuffed. You must also drink lots of water. I have not been completely following the diet as I have had yogurt with a sprinkling of granola the last 2 days (not today). It's not a hard diet and I just want to jump start a weight loss of a few pounds. I've been at 119 for a year and it's way too much. If I get to 112 I will be okay but more would be nice. Just because one gets older it doesn't mean that I should weigh so much more than I ever did. It's all flabby, wiggly fat. I exercise and take vitamins and have a pretty health diet but cutting down on tons of pizza, bread, pasta and rice (oh god all my favs) is not that bad. I mean I'm not going to starve myself or get super thin!!
The hardest part of being retired is going to be not being pulled down by OH's inertia. This coming week I have:
Tues - yoga class
Wed - riding
Thursday - haircut and color - must drive into town
Friday - riding
Sunday - riding
OH has nothing. He does not even go to the gym unless I make a point of going. But he can only go MWF and Sunday and Sunday is the only day I can go in the morning (which is the only time he will go).
I bought Stephanie a mixer for her wedding reception. We are going on Sept 21-24. Kids and everyone are going so I'm happy about seeing them. Will I see Paul?? For the first time since high school??? omg, it will be hilarious.
Funny about re-connecting with Jane after all these years. She is super nice. Of course I don't pretend or put on airs or anything so there is nothing for her to do but be natural also. I called U. Bob the other day to give him a ma update. He's very nice too and has a superb sense of humor.
I chopped off the back of my hair today. Hairdresser will probably brain me when he sees it. I think it looks good tho. Right now it is a a good stage where I can just let it dry and it goes into a nice curly shape. Too bad there is an inch of grey showing!!!
We had the trees trimmed at a total of $1400.00. God, I'm sick of this house and all the fixing up it needs. The whole yard is getting landscaped this fall if I can manage to pry some $$ loose from someone. The master bath- take out the tub and put in a cool, large shower or be cheesy and just leave the tub and replace the tile and fixtures??? If I leave the tub, I can get the silestone countertop. And then my closet is just too awful to attempt.
It's late and I want to go read my Georgette Heyer book. bye
I have now arranged to take 2 private lessons a week and join in the quadrille on Sundays. Last Sunday I rode a horse called Faja who was trailered in by another student named Diedra. Faja was an arab mare and very nice. We were all constantly screwed up the whole time because of miscommunication and bad riding. heh
OH and I both went to volunteer at the therapeutic riding center. I was a side walker for a little boy about 6 years old. I had to stay away from the horse as otherwise, he would jump off into your arms. He did fine but it was very hot. Note to self: next time get on the inside of the horse so i'm not running around when he trots. Parker (the kid riding) was chewing the loose end of the helmet strap and all of a sudden I noticed that blood was dripping down his chin.
Dean started out leading a horse and then when the designated leader actually showed up, he changed to be a side walker. One girl in his class fell off but was not hurt. Rudy the pony spooked when a bucket dropped. I think the whole thing is kind of chancy - much opportunity for accidents.
Bought all new dishes at anthropologie. Must get some glasses also. Need juice glasses and medium glasses. Cleaned out entire kitchen. The only things left are cleaning the hood vent grill and the actual oven (just need to turn it to clean, lol). I also cleaned out the downstairs bathroom drawers and underneath the sink and one drawer of the planning desk in the breakfast room. I'm just doing this little by little when I feel like it.
We started kind of the south beach diet. No starch for 2 weeks. Today I ate:
-scrambled eggs with broccoli and cauliflower
-a can of tuna packed in water with celery, parsley and diet mayo; pickles; and an ounce of cheddar cheese
-a hamburger with low-fat swiss cheese; a salad with lettuce, tomato, cuke, feta cheese and kalamati olives
I'm completely stuffed. You must also drink lots of water. I have not been completely following the diet as I have had yogurt with a sprinkling of granola the last 2 days (not today). It's not a hard diet and I just want to jump start a weight loss of a few pounds. I've been at 119 for a year and it's way too much. If I get to 112 I will be okay but more would be nice. Just because one gets older it doesn't mean that I should weigh so much more than I ever did. It's all flabby, wiggly fat. I exercise and take vitamins and have a pretty health diet but cutting down on tons of pizza, bread, pasta and rice (oh god all my favs) is not that bad. I mean I'm not going to starve myself or get super thin!!
The hardest part of being retired is going to be not being pulled down by OH's inertia. This coming week I have:
Tues - yoga class
Wed - riding
Thursday - haircut and color - must drive into town
Friday - riding
Sunday - riding
OH has nothing. He does not even go to the gym unless I make a point of going. But he can only go MWF and Sunday and Sunday is the only day I can go in the morning (which is the only time he will go).
I bought Stephanie a mixer for her wedding reception. We are going on Sept 21-24. Kids and everyone are going so I'm happy about seeing them. Will I see Paul?? For the first time since high school??? omg, it will be hilarious.
Funny about re-connecting with Jane after all these years. She is super nice. Of course I don't pretend or put on airs or anything so there is nothing for her to do but be natural also. I called U. Bob the other day to give him a ma update. He's very nice too and has a superb sense of humor.
I chopped off the back of my hair today. Hairdresser will probably brain me when he sees it. I think it looks good tho. Right now it is a a good stage where I can just let it dry and it goes into a nice curly shape. Too bad there is an inch of grey showing!!!
We had the trees trimmed at a total of $1400.00. God, I'm sick of this house and all the fixing up it needs. The whole yard is getting landscaped this fall if I can manage to pry some $$ loose from someone. The master bath- take out the tub and put in a cool, large shower or be cheesy and just leave the tub and replace the tile and fixtures??? If I leave the tub, I can get the silestone countertop. And then my closet is just too awful to attempt.
It's late and I want to go read my Georgette Heyer book. bye
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