It Was A Good Day All Around

I started out the day Friday on the right foot, or should I say feet! I went walking with Howard and his walking buddies. We met at 7am and walked for a full hour. Boy does the time fly when you're not walking alone. Today they decided to meet at 6am to avoid the heat. I wasn't about to walk that early so I walked later. All I can say is that it was hot and boring. I think I may need to rethink my decision to sleep in. It's way more fun with them!

When we got home Friday from our walk, I decided to start cleaning out the filing cabinet in the garage. When Howard retired a few years ago, he brought home a 4-drawer filing cabinet that we put in the office closet. Not needing 2 filing cabinets, I've been wanting to consolidate everything into the large one in the closet. Friday was the day!

Besides tax info and papers that we need to keep, I had tons of old letters and cards in the filing cabinet, as well as piles and piles of old college papers and notes. I debated on keeping them, but in the end, I ripped them all up and threw them away. I filled the entire trash can! Throwing all of my college stuff away really tugged at my heart but I knew there was no logical reason to hang onto it. It was a weird feeling tossing it all away though. It made me sad and I felt that now that part of my life is gone forever. Now I have no record of that time in my life ever happening, other than report cards. As a student I kept great notes and took such pride in my education so I hated to see all of it go in the trash, but on the other hand, what was I saving it for? Saving it so that my kids could just throw it away when I'm gone? I actually saved them ALOT of work!

While I was at it, I cleaned out a dresser and other areas of the garage, making piles to be donated. I put Jake in a big comfy chair so that he could be outside with me the whole time. He loved it and was as content as can be. I hate to keep him couped up in the house all the time and as long as he can be with momma, he's a happy boy!

We had lunch with some friends today who invited themselves to our house for dinner Monday night. Yes, they invited themselves, but it's ok! One of the couples owns a restaurant and they are always so generous with us. Believe me, it's our turn!

I guess I should now get busy cleaning the inside of the house!

Crazy California Weather!

The last 4-5 days have been absolutely gorgeous here, but not today. It's cold, windy, and rainy outside. I think I'll just stay inside and cuddle up with the Jakester all day. Actually, it's a perfect ironing and TV watching day. I only watch TV when I iron, so today just might be my TV day.

The pool is finished and looking beautiful but anytime you have any type of work done, a mess ensues, so Sunday afternoon was clean up day. My husband hosed down the back yard and patio and ended up getting all of the windows wet in the process. Yes, all of them! So, cleaning the outside windows led me to cleaning the inside windows, which led to cleaning the shutters, which led to wiping down mirrors, which led to dusting, and so forth and so on! I'm sure you know what I mean! Why do I always forget that Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest! I(we) worked our butts off but boy does everything look nice. Spring cleaning has definitely begun!

Yesterday I wrote some thank you notes that needed to be sent out, packaged up some good mail, went to the post office, then worked in the yard.

Yep, today just might be a TV day!

It's Friday

And I'm nosy...

So here's the question: When was the last time you cleaned out your refrigerator or cleaned underneath it?

This week was a very busy and emotional one for me. I'm not an emotional "eater", I'm an emotional "cleaner!"

I was so upset Sunday after the horrible events of the day before that I did what I do when I'm upset. I cleaned. I cleaned out the inside of the refrigerator, wiped off the top of it, and moved the refrigerator out from the wall and cleaned underneath it. While I was at it, I washed down the walls behind the frig and the cabinets above it. I also cleaned the office from top to bottom, filed papers away, and got rid of the stacks and stacks of papers and junk mail that seem to spring up out of nowhere.

Last night was Nancie's viewing and rosary and today was the funeral. Again, such an emotional time for everyone. I'm sure that means more cleaning will take place this weekend!

I'll talk about the funeral next week but in the meantime, please continue to keep Nancie's family in your thoughts and prayers. Her poor mother is so grief stricken. It just breaks your heart.

Sonja, The Cleaning Lady

I hear Sonja does a fantastic job but unfortunately there's no Sonja cleaning my house. I'm Sonja! I spent all day yesterday cleaning, organizing, and doing a little Fall/Halloween decorating. Having out of town company will do that to you. Actually, maybe I need company more often!

My son is coming home for a few days but he's bringing a friend...a female friend...a female friend who we haven't met yet. We need to leave a good impression don't you think...a clean house, a tidy guest room with clean sheets, a sparkly bathroom. Yep, we've been busy but I can't wait to see my handsome son. What a sweetheart he is!

We've also been busy getting ready for a trip on Saturday. My sisters/spouses and Howard and I are going to Colorado to celebrate my mom's 70th birthday. My mom is a beautiful woman, very fit and healthy and in no way does she look or act 70. My mom and step-dad Jim are great fun and are wonderful hosts so this trip will be amazing. All of us haven't been together like this in years. I can hardly wait!

The bills have been paid and paperwork organized, Jake got his immunizations up to date so he can be boarded while we're away, the house is clean, and even somewhat decorated, plus I worked 2 days this week. Life is good!

Now I just need to pack!

I'm On A Roll!

Ask anyone who knows me, they'll tell you I'm pretty much a clean freak...but you should see the grime that I just cleaned off my tile floors...about once a year, tile by tile, with a scrub brush, on my hands and knees...oh, and you should see my sparkling clean shower too!

Maybe it's the new vitamins I've started taking!

A Space Of My Own...

Our daughter (aka Little Sis) is a sophomore in college. She's been in Arizona for a year and a half now and I've yet to do anything to her room. I pass by her door 10 times a day but I never go in. As proud of her as I am, it makes me sad that she's not here with us. I miss her!

Little Sis has insisted that she's not coming home for Spring Break and may only come home "for about a week" this summer. All of the roommates are getting jobs and staying in AZ for the summer so she wants to do the same.

I give her about 2 weeks in that heat and she'll be heading for home...but, since she's adamant about staying in AZ...


Maybe I'll just fix up her room to be a space of my own! What do ya think!?!! I think it sounds like a plan!

I can't bare the thought of moving all of her furniture out just yet so I'll work around it. If you remember from previous posts, hubby snores so loud he could wake the dead, so having her bed comes in handy. During Christmas break, she had already boxed up 3/4 of her things and put them in her closet, so the rest should be easy.

I've washed the walls, windows, shutters, ceiling fan, and baseboards. Remember, it's occupied a teenager/college student so it hasn't been this clean in forever! This room has great bones...oh this is gonna be so fun...oh, I mean this is gonna be so sad...for about 5 minutes!


Stay tuned!

So How Was Your Day?

Did you all have a nice Valentine's Day? We're you able to spend it with your loved ones? I had a very pleasant Valentine's. Didn't get lots of flowers and gifts, but it was enjoyable just the same. It was enjoyable because it was one of those days that I didn't have to be somewhere or do something...and those days are hard to come by.

In the morning, I spent time on the computer, leisurely reading blogs and such. I was able to catch up on everything. Then I started cleaning and doing laundry...lots and lots of laundry. I washed every piece of bedding in the house. I haven't been home on a Saturday for about 6 weeks so this time at home to clean and get myself organized was sheer heaven. I love puttering around the house, especially on days like yesterday when the weather was nice enough to have the doors and windows open.

In the afternoon we had someone come out to measure for carpet. It's time for new carpet and we need to just bite the bullet and get it done. We're so indecisive about things that it usually takes us months (or years!) but we've picked out the carpet, agreed on a color, and now were negotiating price. We'll know for sure tomorrow if it's a go.

Hubby and I ran a few errands then started our nice dinner at home. We didn't end up with the bbq dinner as planned, instead we had these...


I do make a mean taco if I do say so myself! I make them just like my Mom used to. I brown the hamburger meat, put the meat in corn tortillas, then fry them in hot oil. It's a messy process and I ALWAYS get splattered with hot oil but boy are they worth it. They were a favorite of mine growing up and they're a favorite of my family too. It's a happy day around here when I mention making tacos for dinner.

I hope your Valentine's Day was enjoyable also and most of all, I hope you felt loved! Have a wonderful Sunday!

Only In California

The last 2 days have been extremely gorgeous outside. Not too cold, not to hot, perfect. Yesterday I had a dental appointment in the morning and I wore a zip up jacket. By the time I got out at 10:45, I had to take off the jacket because it had warmed up already.

Today was even prettier. Look what I was up to this afternoon...in the middle of January! To tell you the truth, I felt guilty. I kept thinking about how the weather is FREEZING in certain parts of the country and here I was hanging out in the backyard.


One of my favorite things to do is hose down the patio and sidewalk. Like I've said before, I love watching the dirt roll away! What can I say, the littlest things make me happy!

I also did some window cleaning and hosed down screens. Don't look at the chipped paint on the door behind the screen. That's on my to-do list for spring.


And look who was enjoying the sunshine and fresh air too...


The house gets so dusty during the winter so I took a few things outside and gave them a good washing down. It felt like spring cleaning.


Then I picked lemons. Yes, you read that right! I love putting fresh lemons around the house for decoration...and they make the rooms smell good too.


I'm proud of the productivity so far this year. I'm making good use of my time and it's paying off. Our house has been a whirlwind of activity and it feels good. It feels like old times. I knew I needed to limit my computer time!

Everyone loves California due to the great weather and beautiful people...but we do have to have some sort of consolation for living in California because all.the.nut.cases.live.here! Wonderful weather is our reward.