The Wall

I promised pictures of The Wall.  M picked up some more wall stuff yesterday at the the store.  Is he going to do all the walls?  He hasn't told me and I haven't asked.  I would assume so.  Is he going to do all the walls in the house?  I just hope he finishes our bedroom.

How far will it go?  One wall?  Two?

The wall.

I need to do something about the couch.  The dogs have destroyed the arm.  We area now down to the foam.  The cushion next to this arm is down to the foam cushion, too.

This is Ginger.  She only jumped the fence three times today.  I laugh because she used to not come to me.  I have her trained with cheese now.  She won't come to M now because he is stern with her when she does.  I made him give her cheese after I got her to come back today.  He called for her and she wouldn't come to him so he went back inside and I tried.  She came to me.  In reality, I think she's trained us.

and, NO, I do NOT get a pass AND Avatar

With all this talk of being ill and all, I want to stress most definitively that I don't think I get a pass on my behavior.  In fact, I think I have to be more vigilent.  If you know you have a problem and have acknowledged it, then you need to do everything you can to stay in control.  You really should have NO excuses, right, well......I wouldn't go that far--hahahahahahaha

I'm reminded of a radio commerical for Dr. Laura that I hear regularly.  She must be speaking to a caller about depression or something and says in a very falsetto voice,  "I can't do the laundry because I'm very sad..."  And then in her voice says something like, "Boy, she really knows how to work the system."

I can't wait to post a picture of my bedroom wall.  I've been complaining that I can't get M to help me with the home improvements I want to make.  I said I'd be willing to do just about anything to get him going.  Well........  Last night, of all things for him to start working on, he started to "plaster" the ENTIRE wall with some type of repair putty.  I'm not sure how I feel about this because, most of all, it could very well turn into one of those projects he starts and never finishes.  Before one judges me as being pessimistic, I've lived with the man for almost 18 years and I've not had a shower wall for 12.

We've never liked the textured walls that are in every room of our house.  I don't like them because they collect dust.  M doesn't like them because he says they look poorly done.

I walked in on him starting this job and was stunned.  He didn't say he was going to do it or consult me first.  He got about 1/3 of a wall done.  Please note that it's not just a matter of putting this putty on the wall.  I guess it will have to be sanded down, too.  He must have been a mind reader and not in a good way because I had just decided to get paint next payday and start painting......

More marital silliness:

M calls me from Walmart last night.  He asked if I needed anything.  I tried really hard to think of something really good because he hardly ever offers.  The best I could do was to ask him to get me some chocolate (sometimes it's the best medicine).  I figured he was there buying Avatar, but I didn't let on.  When he got home he didn't have the movie--only a bunch of heartburn medicine and our candy (our medical Flex card expires at the end of the month so he was using the rest of the money in the account so we don't lose it).  I waited patiently for him to discuss Avatar and why he didn't buy it (which I could care less about because, even though I know it's a movie magic miracle of special effects, I don't like to instructed into political correctness and beat over the head with a political message by a movie) so I could get my fill of laughing at the absurdity of my shopper challenged husband.  (Hey, all in good fun!)  Sure enough he couldn't find Avatar to buy at our Walmart because they must have not been selling it or they sold out.

Pause, as I'm still laughing.....

S:  Remember, M, we are in the bad part of town and they lock everything up.

M:  Well, I didn't see any copies anywhere

S:  Did you go back to Electronics and ask anyone?

M:  Well, you know you can never find anyone to help you

S:  (silence)

M:  Well, I don't think they had it

S:  (silence)  Everyone is selling it, including the grocery store!  I saw it there tonight.  Our store isn't like my mom's where they have pallets of movies out in plain view.  The people in my mom's neighborhood would be very offended if movies were locked up, but our's is different.  I'm sure if you had gone back to Electronics and asked for a copy, they had some.

M:  (annoyed look saying You think you know everything and silence)

S:  (dropping subject)  Dinner in 15


He ended up taking C to Walmart after dinner.  She had asked him to buy elastic hair bands--that's a good one--and he bought ponytail elastics.  Guess what he found?  Avatar in Electronics on the shelf in it's theftproof display.

I got as far as the initial discussion of "Unobtanium" before LMBO and going to bed.

I Haven't Given Up

I haven't given up on getting things done around the house.

M took my dresser to Goodwill last Sunday. I wondered if he would ever take it, but this was a perfect example of M being on his own schedule and no amount of nagging or distress makes him move any faster. I got tired of looking at the counter in the kitchen that had a ton of his junk piled on it so I shoved it all into bags and put it all downstairs. He noticed right away, but only asked what I did with it all. He probably knew he had no room to complain since it's been over two months since I asked him to do it. He hasn't made a move to fix C's closet yet so that is next on the agenda. The door he took off months ago still sits in the hallway. (I think one of the dogs has even lifted their leg on it a couple of times.....) I am taking it downstairs this weekend.

As you might guess, the basement is a wasteland of junk. I have a broken wash machine or dryer down there from years ago. At least it's not outside in the backyard where another appliance has sat for years. The basement also houses all my fabric totes. I will be going through that all soon enough. I can't bear to part with any of it, but I might just have to. As it is, I rarely use any of it and I'm wondering if I'll ever get back to any of the PhD's that are stored either. I donated a ton of it years ago to Firehouse Quilts and I may do that again. (I donated a bunch of fabric that I had purchased before I knew what good fabric was.)

The Log Cabin Quilt has been ignored for weeks. I sewed four of the five rows and then stopped. I even bought the border fabrics so I don't really know what my problem is? The thought of another finished quilt must have scared me?! I haven't given up painting our room. I think I've got a case of nerves about it, though.

My salvation will be that warmer weather is just around the corner. It's been flirting with the Denver-area already. We're expecting another snow storm this afternoon. I always get more done in the summer.

It is What it is....

It is what it is. I felt motivated enough today even though I knew I was going to be the only one working. I don't usually, but I did today.

I couldn't let the weekend end without working on my dresser. If you can believe it, I gave more clothes away. I down to three pairs of jeans that I actually like to wear, some shirts, and some sleepwear. I need to figure out where I want to put it all since I'm going dresser-less next week. M will take it away next weekend even if I have to bribe him!

I think it's Diane that would be proud of me for finally cleaning out the unmatched sock drawer by throwing them away. I've got to figure out what to do with all the paperwork I've got stuffed in a drawer and stored on top. I'll probably just stuff everything in a tote for now. (I've got the kids' report cards, homemade cards and presents, and assorted other stuff I'm not willing to part with--yet.) I've also got years of school picture packets to store.

I found some stuff like made me grimace with embarrassment. For instance, I ran around town looking for a New Years banner and I have one still in its package from who knows when. (Nice to know that I'm consistent in my ideas. One of these days I'll get the kids together in their New Years hats to take that picture.) I found all of my Stephenie Meyer autographed books: Twilight, the recently received New Moon (for making the Twilight Quilt), Breaking Dawn, and The Host. The funny thing is that I've NEVER been about autographs and I'm still not, but I have all these books. I know how special they are! I've just never been one to display things. I also found the Twilight, the movie, T-Shirts I bought to make a T-Shirt quilt eons ago.

I have one more row on the Log Cabin quilt to sew. I think I've solved my border problem. I've never been one for plain borders of just fabric, I usually piece something, but I had one planned all along for this quilt because the quilt I used as inspiration had one. I've listened to everyone's advice, but I still like that brown Asian butterfly fabric I have. I really do think it will work. See if you can picture this? I will sew a 3" border of the brown fabric, then a light aqua fabric strip (2"?) next, and last another border of the brown fabric. I will get to use the fabric I want but also tie the border to the rest of the quilt with the aqua fabric. I think I might even use one of the very first two fabrics from the Log Cabin blocks. I've found enough of the fabric online, but I'm going to see if the lqs I bought it at still has some........next week when I get a new supply of money.

***edited, 5 p.m.

Had to get out of the house this afternoon. The kids were fighting over the cat. I left to go to the lqs. They didn't have anymore of the butterfly fabric except for FQs so I'll have to get it online.

Where Did it Go?!

It's Sunday night and I can't believe it! My weekend zoomed by....

We had a busy day. I slept in which I don't like to do because it's wasted time. I was behind today before I even got up.

I raced to Walmart this morning to reload my moneycard with my paycheck dated today. I bought myself another belated b'day gift of the Swifter Wet Jet. Sad to say, though, that I didn't get to try it out. I bought the girls some new sheets. I haven't managed to get anything else done for their room. We window shopped yesterday and they pointed out the sheets. Theirs are both so ratty that I went ahead and splurged this morning. C is still having a tug-o-war with her dad over her closet. He took the door off as planned months back and still hasn't got the stuff to fill in or cover the places where the hinges were. She's annoyed and so am I. I'm having such a difficult time getting him to do anything.

I told him that since the Log Cabin Quilt is almost done that we had to get going on our room so we would have a place to put it. He just rolled his eyes. I plan on getting my dresser cleaned off and cleaned out so he can get it out of there like he promised. I confirmed tonight that he will do it so I better get moving before he changes his mind.

I also bought a replacement crockpot today. I'm not much of a crockpotter despite some friends and my mom trying to get me to be. I mostly use the ones I've had to keep food warm at potlucks. I needed one today for the food I took to A's Blue and Gold Ceremony for his Boy Scout Pack. M decided he wanted me to make fried rice so I did. I also made some frozen potstickers and homemade eggrolls. I still haven't figured out how to roll them correctly and they looked horrible, but they tasted good! I put asparagus and chicken in them along with Chinese cabbage, shredded carrot, beansprouts, and onion. I have some wrappers left so I'm going to try to make some more. They're really not that tough to make, just time consuming.

The ceremony went longer than expected so I didn't get back up to the quilt shop like I wanted to. I'll have to head up there this week before I forget all the fabric I had picked out yesterday when I was window shopping.

Tonight was movie night at church. C, A, and I went. In honor of Purim, we watched One Night with the King. We didn't go to dinner since we'd had such a big lunch. The movie was good. There is something about a man wearing guy-liner. hahahahahahaha Luke Goss as King Xerxes was easy to look at. (I had to come and IMDB him and, who knew, but he's the same guy who played the baddie in Hellboy II and one of the main vamps in Blade II.)





The only knowledge I had of Esther's story was the Veggie Tales' version and I saw it so long ago. This version had a lot of intrigue and romance so I enjoyed it. Some biblical stories as produced for movie can be very dry and assume too much prior knowledge. I'd like to see the movie again because I missed a lot of the beginning because of audience noise, etc. We also had these silly noisemakers to spin when Haman was on screen which the kids used with glee.

It's 9:30 and I have so much left undone. I'm aching to call in sick tomorrow, but I won't. I don't want to let my boss down and have a poor start to my week.

Short

I'm short at 5'0, but that's not what I'm talking about....

I find myself short of fabric again. I finally got up to Harriet's Treadle Arts on Thursday to get the fabric I was short of for the Log Cabin blocks. It's a good thing because the bolt was done to the last yard or so. I got some other stuff, but I missed my birthday discount. I also got caught in a wicked snow storm, but that didn't stop me from stopping at one of my favorite Chinese restaurants for a #11: a combination Vietnamese dish with rice noodles and raw veggies. I never use the spicy fish sauce it comes with. I only go to this restaurant on the way home from this quilt shop so I wasn't going to let a snow storm get in my way since I didn't know when I'd get back that way. I used to go all the time when I worked at a dentist's office down the street.

I got caught up on the three blocks I didn't have this fabric for and am now working my way through piecing the rest of the blocks. I couldn't wait to see what they were going to look like finished so I cut the rest of the fabrics. I am just barely short of the last fabric which is a 2.5x14.5" unfinished strip. I don't know if it would have made a difference if I'd have planned better in the order I cut my strips. I guess that's what you get for working from a picture and not a pattern. I like to live on the quilting edge. It's a bummer because I was at GAQF on Friday. Why is it that when I go for a sale or a discount that I can never find much to buy?

These are what the blocks look like finished. They're 14". The blocks have become a little unmanageable with the last strips and are taking a lot more time to sew. I'm eager to finish them all, get the top pieced, and find a border fabric.



I bought a couple of fabrics weeks back when I shopped for my aquas. This is the brown Hoffman/Asian fabric that I like. M isn't sold.



Here's a scan:

Hoffman/Spring Street

I had planned another border/sashing fabric in between the blocks and the outside border. I like this fabric a lot by itself, but I'm not sure if it's right with the brown border fabric. I think it may be too busy and/or the print too large. It might make more sense to use a fabric from the Hoffman/Spring Street line if I use the brown fabric from the line I pictured.



I was surprised to learn that it's from a Possibilities (of Great American Quilt Factory/GAQF) line:


Possibilities/Petals and Paisley

I used one of the other fabrics from this line in the Log Cabin blocks. I've always liked paisley!


Possibilities/Petals and Paisley

Feel free to weigh in. This is the pattern the blocks will make:



If I go with any of these fabrics I will need to buy more. I only bought 1/2 yds.

A note if you haven't followed this quilt's progress. I plan to hang it behind the bed in our bedroom. I had a bed picked out, but M is balking at my choice now. His choice is more traditional. I hope that we can find a compromise.

Oh, and when I'm not sewing quilts......

I'm kicking myself! I got so involved sewing Log Cabin blocks that I forgot I needed to make A's sweatshirt for his school music program on Tuesday. Doh! I was actually supposed to have his costume in last week, but I kept forgetting to think something up. I wanted to just find him a space T-shirt, but I never got out anywhere to find one. None of the department stores close to home had anything.

I was actually headed to bed at 10:30 when I saw the bag with the stuff, but was glad I did. It would have been horrible if I didn't get this done.

The sweatshirt was on sale at Walmart where I got all the other supplies, including the planet fabric and silver letters. I used fusible to get the planets on the sweatshirt and then thought better to sew them down closely to their edges for longevity. I hope he likes it!

Nagging Until it Hurts

M and I do a lot of dancing around each other.

On our good days we do our best NOT to annoy each other. I look the other way when he drops a couple of paper towels on the floor to clean up dog pee and walks away. (I pick them up after him and 409 the floor without comment.) He insists that he would eventually pick them up--he was just waiting for the paper towel to do it's job of soaking up the mess and drying for easier clean-up. (Yeah, ugh....leaving a pee soaked paper towel on the floor for 24-hours is the worst of his habits.) HE ignores my spending habits and the fact that he has to clean up a lot my financial shortfalls and messes. (I think these worst of our habits.)

I generally try not to rock the boat. There are times, usually when I'm in a bad mood about something else, that I push the envelope. I did that today. I wasn't really mad about anything else, I just didn't want another Saturday to go by without getting some stuff done around here. I voiced my desire for M to clean out our.....HIS....closet last month. MY plan is for the closet to be cleaned out and organized so that we can get rid of the dressers in our room. A good closet is going to waste while we barely have enough room to navigate the limited pathway between our bed and the dressers which are clothes storage receptacles and that's about all. I stopped using my dresser a long time ago except as a catch-all for unmatched socks, important documents like the kids report cards, and the top to store the clothes that I do wear. M has clothes in his dresser that he hasn't worn since we were first-time parents except for one drawer of T-shirts.



I've been after him for years to go through and get rid of stuff. He probably would have complied if it had been his own decision and not me trying to get him to do it!

I woke up this morning raring to go. (I love Saturdays because I get a HOT shower.) M made pancakes for the kids while I puttered around the house picking things up and vacuuming. (Stuff that needed to be done, but more an example of someone working and that I wasn't going to be a weekend slacker.) I made a list of chores for the kids to complete this weekend, mostly kitchen-related. Then, I dropped the bomb on M. I've had bags for M to take to Goodwill for a couple of weeks. I knew he had errands to run that included a grocery store run and a trip to Grease Monkey to get my oil changed. I casually asked him what his plans were and he confirmed the previous. I suggested--okay, told him--that I would like for him to take my stuff to Goodwill. In the same breath, I suggested--okay, told him--that it would be great if he would go through his stuff to include in our donation. He grumbled, but when I got back from my trip to get the needles I like for binding sewing he was doing it.... Well, wonders never cease!!

The closet is still a disaster and I need a dust mask to work in there, but we've got a good start. I'm noticing stuff that I bought years ago on clearance for Halloween and Easter, three totes of more clothes that we've not missed in years and probably don't fit, and a bunch of toys that M took away from Z in punishment. There was also a pair of size 13 Vans tennis shoes that I bought in error for Z that I couldn't return because I lost the receipt. S could have worn them a shoe size ago so I'll have to remember them for A.

Oh, and I discovered a whole stack of quilting magazines, books, and the instruction manual to my sewing machine that I thought were lost forever!

I'm being a baddie as I sit here and blog. I'm grinning because the kids all wanted to go run errands with their dad and no amount of dissuading them could get them to stay home--boring as heck at Grease Monkey, no lunch out, and "I'm not buying you anything." The sacrifice of being out with their grumpy dad probably had something to do with my list of chores. The house is quiet--no kids fighting... I'm as happy as a lark even if I'm doing laundry and cleaning a closet.

Psych!

For anyone arriving after Googling Psych the television show....Sorry! Although it's one of my favorite television shows, this post isn't about it.

I've done my best to psych myself up into tackling the closet this weekend. I know, I know, I've talked about it before and not done it. I have to admit that I was hoping M would get in there before me, but no such luck.

I plan on making out a list for the kids. I think they should be able to figure what their responsibilities are by now, but they continue to be resistant to doing things without me nagging them to death. I might as well get over my dreams of them voluntarily doing things around the house.

SO, on that note, I'm going to talk about happier things. Until I get my main blog up and running I'll just have to talk about all my quilting on this one even though it strays a little from my goal of keeping things separate.



I got the binding machine sewed on the front of M's quilt. I'll hand sew it down to the back tomorrow. (I seriously considered using the machine sewing method, but I don't want to try it for the first time on this quilt.) I still struggle with the no-bump binding everytime I do it despite the fact that I've done so many. I hinted to M that he should give me some cash to hangout at Starbucks all day and sew the binding. He laughed me off as usual.

I'm so not about the Big Reveal because I can't wait to share. You get the idea of the quilt with the binding. Oh, to take a picture when it's all done!

January Went Where?

This weekend is the last weekend of January. I know it sounds inane to ask, "Where did January Go?"....but I'm going to do it anyway--yeah, I I guess I just did!

I can't let January end without getting into the closet in my room, M's closet, and cleaning it out. M went in there tonight to find my bowling ball and shoes and he almost got stuck in there when he shut the door. He found my bowling bag so I can go bowling with Z and C's youth group.

I wanted to get more done this month, but it just didn't happen. We cleaned the kitchen and everyone was so exhausted that we took the next weekend off. Then, everyone got sick one person at a time. I've been sick with a cold for over a week. I'm almost 100%, but I'm still a little congested and still have an occasional cough.

I also plan to start the Log Cabin Quilt this weekend. I really tried to pull some fabrics out of my stash as my friend Brenda suggested, but after three tries I'm giving up. M didn't like anything I was going to try to use. He's my most trusted color advisor and I usually listen. Since this quilt is going in our room, I have added incentive to listen to him. Looks like I'll be shopping at the LQSs this weekend.

My Room: Log Cabin Quilt

Above is the quilt I was talking about that is displayed at Great American Quilt Factory (GAQF). I needed a break this afternoon (more about that later....) and so, despite my better judgement in thinking I could go into a quilt store without finding something I needed to buy, I headed up there to get a picture of my quilt.

M liked it and so it's good as done!

Looking for ways to display quilts in your home? All People Quilt

I'm trying to figure out which way I like best:

My Room: Color Palette

I was out and about today. I feel a little guilty spending the whole day out because I did have plans to stay home and work on the closet and some other things. I spent the day out with my girls and we had a good time. Translation: went and had bagels at Einstein Bagels and I spent money on them.

We did look at home dec stuff for them at WalMart. The girls love the Your Zone teen line at WalMart. C is especially very anxious to get everything done as soon as possible. I told her we'd have to do a little bit at a time and that she was going to have work really hard. You should have seen her face when I told her she could start by cleaning her walls. It doesn't help that S isn't helping. Their room is going to be bright is all I know. C still wants her skulls quilt, but now wants black and neon/lime green rather than the pink skulls I've been collecting. She has recently developed an aversion to pink.

I also went to one of my quilt stores. I've been eager to get some FQs to show M the color palette I had in mind. He was leery of my ideas after I showed him the paint cards I brought home last week. He turned his nose up at the aqua/tourquoise-y shades I wanted to pair with brown. I thought I was going to have to settle on just...blue. He's had a change of heart based upon my FQ examples or I wore him down because he agreed to this:





I want a log cabin quilt behind my bed. I don't what the layout is called, but I'm sold on the layout of a quilt that GAQF has as a quilt sample for Eleanor Burns Quilt-in-a-Day Log Cabin book. I need to get in there to get a picture.


This is the bed we want.

Tomorrow: to at least start on the closet

My Room

I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe the dirt. (Shannon--may be you can see the build-up of dirt on the door frame of M's closet and laugh. A CSI-type test would prove it's M's dirt.) I have been after M to clean the bedroom screen for......years. I'm a horrible housekeeper, but the one thing I do try to keep up with is the cobwebs. Eeew! Part of not cleaning the windowsill is principal on my part.

The scratched drywall is a newer thing. The dog's scratch the heck out to the wall in their impatience to get out of the bedroom when M gets up to let them out during the night, in the morning, or whenever. I am so MAD!!

The yellow walls are my fault. They're the reason M refuses to paint for me again. I waited until he was done to say I didn't like the yellow. I like yellow, but not his shade and not this much. He painted the room for me before we changed bedrooms when I was pregnant with child #3....I think?

M's plastic roll-around nightstand is a new thing since last weekend. I hate it. He wanted something to put more stuff on since the dresser is piled high. I'm one to talk. My dresser is piled high with my clothes. I have none in the closet and I don't put clothes in my dresser. M's dresser is full with clothes he doesn't wear except for socks and underwear in the broken top drawer and a couple of T-shirts in the second. He won't go through his clothes and give anything up.

M says the room is 12x10ish, but I'm going to measure.

The plan:

1) Clean, clean, clean the dirt.

2) Clean and organize the closet (Use whatever means necessary to get M to get rid of some stuff so we can both use the closet). I will probably have to get some Elfa baskets for the stuff that won't hang.

3) Get rid of the dressers. (We can barely walk between the bed and the dressers to navigate the bedroom.)

4) Paint--still undecided on the color. M is being stubborn.

5) Get a new bed and mattress for us. I'm leaning toward a platform bed, but M is being difficult. (May be I can bribe him with a real nighstand?)

6) Curtains for the window

7) I want a quilt behind our bed and on it.

Michael wants to move the bed to the opposing wall that is near the door. One of us won't get a nightstand if that's the case. I see his point since our bed is in view of the window that faces the neighbor's house and we've never had a curtain. (Perhaps that's why he won't clean the screen?) In the summer it's not so bad since a leafy bush/tree grows lushly in front of the window.