A couple of weeks back when I pulled out my scrapbook materials I had been in Dugger's room and noticed that the second album I bought him for his Costa Rica pictures has never been filled and the photos were spilling onto the floor of his room. I was encouraging him to "bond" with me over scrapbooking. He could fill his album at the kitchen table while I worked on my album.
When I scrapbook, I like to watch/listen to the T.V. as I work. We have a small T.V. on the kitchen counter and I pull it forward and turn it towards the table as it typically faces the sink and stove area. I was willing to put the T.V. aside and bond with Dugger, but I couldn't wait forever. Over the Fourth of July Weekend, while I was working on my album, I was watching my favorite channel HGTV. Dugger came up from the basement to tell me he was watching a T.V. series marathon and that I might like the show. It's called Burn Notice and is in it's second season.
My T.V. series luck is that I find a new show that I love and it get's canceled during the first season. This always happens. Last year I came across a show one night about vampires and liked it. It was right at my kitchen clean up time so I would miss portions of it picking up kids or getting kids off to bed, etc. The next week I tuned back in and watch it. The third week I can't find it and can't remember the name. I look for it again the fourth week and still can't find it. I begin a google search with bit's of the title and find the show online and it had been canceled. Anyway back to bonding.
So, Dugger heads back to the basement and I get up and change the channel of the T.V. think yeah, yeah, like I'm going to like this show but my channel is reruns anyway. This Burn Notice show is about an ex-spy who's been dumped from the spy business (CIA, FBI who knows). Supposedly when they get kicked out they are given this "burn notice" and sort of abandoned by the organization. This ex-spy is now an edgy do gooder privater investigator. Personally it reminds me of Magnum P.I. There are a lot of similar character elements. If you watch it let me know what you think.
I'm upstairs watching the show. Dugger is in the basement watching the show. We are probably no more than 30 feet from each other. When I tune out and miss parts I just yell down to him to catch me up in the commercials. He occasionally comes up and makes conversation about what's happening in the show. About three shows into the marathon Doug comes into the kitchen and wants to know why I'm watching this dumb show. I say I'm bonding with Dugger. Then I explain how Dugger got me to watch the show and he downstairs watching the same show. I yell down a question about the show to Dugger and he yells up an answer and I say, "See!" to Doug.
Now Dugger let's me know each week when the show is about to come on so I can watch the new episodes. He also keeps me informed about a new doctor show on the same channel that I expressed an interest in. I'll take my "bonds" wherever I can get them.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Some Finished Projects
I have finished some items off my summer list. Over the Fourth of July weekend, I finished the wedding photo album that I had been working on. We had a rainy and chilly Fourth of July Day so we just stayed home and laid around. It worked out well as project finishing day.
Doug was scheduled for surgery on Tuesday the 7th, so he encouraged me to choose painting the kitchen ceiling as my next project. My scrapbooking stuff was off the table and placed back in the basement, sewing projects were at a stand still, and the boys had already taken our family photos off the kitchen wall and placed them in the basement. It was a good time to begin this project and I should be able to finish it later in the day Tuesday while Doug was resting at home after the surgery.
The kitchen naturally divides into two sections, so it made sense to paint it that way and move the big furniture pieces to each side of the room. I covered the china cabinet with a tarp and left it where it was, moved the recycle bins and garbage can outside, moved the dining chairs and baker's rack to T-Man's room, and moved the table to the cooking area. Next I dusted the ceiling and swept the floor. I placed painters tape along the edge of the walls and then taped up a 24" wide layer of butcher paper against the walls to try and keep any paint splatter off the walls. Finally, I taped down plastic tarps to the floor to keep paint off our nice tiles.
I was ready to start painting. Surprise! The paint I bought last year, maybe even two years ago (since our floor is over a year old), had begun to harden. It had the consistency of hardening plaster. Now I had to go to the paint store and buy some new paint.
I had a lot of concerns that the paint would not hide the wall paint that had gotten on the ceiling and dried or the age marks left by the old light fixtures. That first coat of paint is often uneven and doesn't give a good indication of how the finished product will look. I was hot, sweaty, sore and unhappy with the ceiling when I finished that first coat.
Monday I had a meeting at school so I didn't get to apply the second coat until the late afternoon. As I was getting close to finishing T-man called and needed to be picked up from work at the zoo. Doug had left with Angelique so I needed to close things up and go get T-Man. When I returned it was hard to tell where I had left off and what needed to be finished. I did the best I could. Doug pointed out a few spots that need paint and I finished up. I took down the cover I had over the light fixture and turned on the lights. I still didn't like the ceiling. The paint seemed streaky. Anyway I cleaned up the area, taking off tarps, removing tape and paper, and returning furniture.
By that time I was too tired to begin set-up for the other side of the kitchen. That would have to wait until after Doug's surgery. Several days later I repeated the steps on the other side of the kitchen. This area was smaller (I kept telling myself that.)and didn't require moving furniture, just covering appliances. I started painting early in the day and was able to do a second coat in the evening. I touched up areas in the larger section and was finished. The ceiling looks tremendously better than it did before (I keep telling myself that!) and I am satisfied with the results.
That's two more projects off my list!!
Doug was scheduled for surgery on Tuesday the 7th, so he encouraged me to choose painting the kitchen ceiling as my next project. My scrapbooking stuff was off the table and placed back in the basement, sewing projects were at a stand still, and the boys had already taken our family photos off the kitchen wall and placed them in the basement. It was a good time to begin this project and I should be able to finish it later in the day Tuesday while Doug was resting at home after the surgery.
The kitchen naturally divides into two sections, so it made sense to paint it that way and move the big furniture pieces to each side of the room. I covered the china cabinet with a tarp and left it where it was, moved the recycle bins and garbage can outside, moved the dining chairs and baker's rack to T-Man's room, and moved the table to the cooking area. Next I dusted the ceiling and swept the floor. I placed painters tape along the edge of the walls and then taped up a 24" wide layer of butcher paper against the walls to try and keep any paint splatter off the walls. Finally, I taped down plastic tarps to the floor to keep paint off our nice tiles.
I was ready to start painting. Surprise! The paint I bought last year, maybe even two years ago (since our floor is over a year old), had begun to harden. It had the consistency of hardening plaster. Now I had to go to the paint store and buy some new paint.
I had a lot of concerns that the paint would not hide the wall paint that had gotten on the ceiling and dried or the age marks left by the old light fixtures. That first coat of paint is often uneven and doesn't give a good indication of how the finished product will look. I was hot, sweaty, sore and unhappy with the ceiling when I finished that first coat.
Monday I had a meeting at school so I didn't get to apply the second coat until the late afternoon. As I was getting close to finishing T-man called and needed to be picked up from work at the zoo. Doug had left with Angelique so I needed to close things up and go get T-Man. When I returned it was hard to tell where I had left off and what needed to be finished. I did the best I could. Doug pointed out a few spots that need paint and I finished up. I took down the cover I had over the light fixture and turned on the lights. I still didn't like the ceiling. The paint seemed streaky. Anyway I cleaned up the area, taking off tarps, removing tape and paper, and returning furniture.
By that time I was too tired to begin set-up for the other side of the kitchen. That would have to wait until after Doug's surgery. Several days later I repeated the steps on the other side of the kitchen. This area was smaller (I kept telling myself that.)and didn't require moving furniture, just covering appliances. I started painting early in the day and was able to do a second coat in the evening. I touched up areas in the larger section and was finished. The ceiling looks tremendously better than it did before (I keep telling myself that!) and I am satisfied with the results.
That's two more projects off my list!!
Friday, July 3, 2009
From Tuesday to Tuesday
Beginning with June 15, Mimi has had at least one swim meet per week. Last Tuesday, June 23rd, we had a meet at our home pool (the pool right by our house). The temperature was 91° and it was humid. Doug was a lane timer and I was the Mimi supervisor. Just sitting in the folding chair somewhat in the shade, I was dripping in sweat. I felt like I was melting. These meets are at least four hours long when you factor in arrival time and warm-up prior to the start of the actual competition.
A storm came up as we hit the half-way point in the meet. The clouds rolled in, then we heard bits of rumbling in the distance, the meet continued. Then we heard loud claps of thunder and experienced some rain, the swimmers continued to swim that event. Then there was a loud claps of thunder,heavy rain, and lightening was sighted. The meet was immediately halted. The rule is to wait 20 minutes from the last bolt of lightening before returning to the pool. As the 20 minutes came to a close there was another streak of lightening. At this point the meet was over. Since we had passed the half-way point of the events for the meet a team winner can be named and the meet does not have to be finished at a later date or forfeited.
This Tuesday we had another swim meet, again at our home pool. Doug urged me to take a sweatshirt because he felt like after dark it would get cool. I was excited to grab a sweatshirt because my new high-school sweatshirt had just arrived. Doug made a special logo design of T-man's high school. You know how picky he is about his school T-shirt designs. When T-man's didn't have what he wanted, he made his own.
Anyway we head to the pool. Doug again was a timer and I was a supervisor. I can't time, because it requires eye/ear-hand coordination. When Doug is not the timer I do other things for the team such as ribbon writing/labeling, ribbon filing, hospitality, or time sheet runner and then he is the Mimi supervisor.
I was sitting in my chair reading a book. Mimi completed her warm-up in the pool and put on her sweats. I decided that it was a bit chilly and but on my sweatshirt. I wore my sweatshirt the entire meet from 5:00 pm till 9:15 pm. I even drew my hands up in my sleeves. I made a trip to the van to get a sweatshirt from my blizzard supplies for Mimi to wear over her sweatshirt (it was an XXL). Yes, I have a travel bag with blizzard supply items. In the summer I call it my hurricane supplies. In case we get stranded in our car during a hurricane (ha, ha).
Within a week's time we experienced extreme temperatures. Today is the first day this week that we have used the A/C.
A storm came up as we hit the half-way point in the meet. The clouds rolled in, then we heard bits of rumbling in the distance, the meet continued. Then we heard loud claps of thunder and experienced some rain, the swimmers continued to swim that event. Then there was a loud claps of thunder,heavy rain, and lightening was sighted. The meet was immediately halted. The rule is to wait 20 minutes from the last bolt of lightening before returning to the pool. As the 20 minutes came to a close there was another streak of lightening. At this point the meet was over. Since we had passed the half-way point of the events for the meet a team winner can be named and the meet does not have to be finished at a later date or forfeited.
This Tuesday we had another swim meet, again at our home pool. Doug urged me to take a sweatshirt because he felt like after dark it would get cool. I was excited to grab a sweatshirt because my new high-school sweatshirt had just arrived. Doug made a special logo design of T-man's high school. You know how picky he is about his school T-shirt designs. When T-man's didn't have what he wanted, he made his own.
Anyway we head to the pool. Doug again was a timer and I was a supervisor. I can't time, because it requires eye/ear-hand coordination. When Doug is not the timer I do other things for the team such as ribbon writing/labeling, ribbon filing, hospitality, or time sheet runner and then he is the Mimi supervisor.
I was sitting in my chair reading a book. Mimi completed her warm-up in the pool and put on her sweats. I decided that it was a bit chilly and but on my sweatshirt. I wore my sweatshirt the entire meet from 5:00 pm till 9:15 pm. I even drew my hands up in my sleeves. I made a trip to the van to get a sweatshirt from my blizzard supplies for Mimi to wear over her sweatshirt (it was an XXL). Yes, I have a travel bag with blizzard supply items. In the summer I call it my hurricane supplies. In case we get stranded in our car during a hurricane (ha, ha).
Within a week's time we experienced extreme temperatures. Today is the first day this week that we have used the A/C.
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