Calendar: One Down, Two to Go.

Whew.

I have finished the version of the (8x8) calendar I will give to my Mom. Just in time! As for the copies to be mailed to my Mother-in-law and my Grandmother, the pages are scanned and the months of 2012 are typed into the computer: I just can't finish printing them out until I can get out and buy a black ink cartridge for the printer. Urgh.

Still.

January to June:


July to December:


I did this the quickest way I know how: the same background cardstock (kraft--I had just enough), a patterned paper for the photo mat (just because I love patterned paper), one embellishment and one quote on coordinating cardstock. I picked the embellishments, first, before the papers, by the way. Much easier to coordinate that way! Then came the patterned paper, and, then, just as paint should be picked last because there are a thousand colours of paint, the cardstock.

I had been dreading this. All year. That's partly the reason the pictures are so lousy. I wasn't trying. Last year, I kept track of my hours--and I think it took me about 40. (I used a kit--never again!) This year, I bet it's taken only half that--or less.

Now, I need to eat (and more than the cookies we baked yesterday, too!) and get dressed!

Keeping On

Thanks so much for your encouragement.
It means the world to me.

So, on to today's Daily Checklist.

Weigh myself: oops.

Make bed: check

Wash breakfast dishes:

Well, they weren't so much the breakfast dishes as they were leftovers from last night. The dinner dishes were done--by my daughter. I had to run an errand last night. Came home to Aurelia/Emma standing at the sink nearly over flowing with water, dish rack nearly full and in the middle of a noisy, ugly, crocodile cry. I didn't ask.

But look! A completely cleared counter. Haven't seen that in a long while.

Pick up House: done.

Swish and swipe:
downstairs: yes
upstairs, yes. How quickly it went given yesterdays marathon!

Laundry: started two, transferred two, folded one.

Review Calendar, make To-Do List:
1) Bake cookies! I'll do this shortly when my daughter gets home from school.
2) Work on calendar
(I've put in about an hour or so, today. I'm somewhere in Chapter 10 of Great Expectations.)
3) Vacuum back entry: no
4) Vacuum stairs: no
5) Put recycling out for pick-up (last chance until January 5th): Will do this evening.

Do One Essential Task: The cookies.

Weekly Chores: Thursday
file papers: no

Pay bills: yes.

Our electric/water bill came yesterday: it was extraordinarily high. My first thought was: I'll kill those kids for leaving the computer/x-box/TV on all the time--when I suddenly realised it was a bill for two months, not one. I checked my household management binder, and sure enough, I'd forgotten to pay the bills I normally pay in the first half of the month. I was mortified. And scared. It's been a long time since I've fallen behind paying the bills.

It's like some housekeeping Dementor came and sucked two weeks out of my life. (My daughter and I are now well into The Order of the Phoenix.)

wash Kitchen floor: no

wash bathroom floors.
Downstairs: my son did this for me yesterday.
Upstairs: no

I purchased and downloaded my Motivated Mom's 2012 chore list today. My plan is to use it as a reference--which makes it sort of silly that I purchased it. I have copies of previous years' on my computer and it doesn't change.

I thought I would go through it and schedule in those things I haven't got already on my list. I'd like to do this all at once--for the whole year--and run off my own week per day list to keep in my home management binder, but the chances of that are probably slim.

Most of the cleaning on this list will be done tomorrow. I actually think I just may get the calendar done in time for my Mom on Christmas Eve. Cross your fingers for me!

Committment

We're having power outages in the house: so it may be a miracle this gets posted at all!

I apologize for yet another housekeeping post. But, if I don't report what I did (and did not do) today--I may do nothing at all tomorrow. I'm tempted. I feel Christmas breathing down my back as I am doing my best to work quickly on this calendar for my mother (copies of which go to my Mother-in-law and my grandmother).

I checked out an audiobook of Great Expectations from the library to keep me company. I fervently and heartily wish I had thought of this in November!

OK: the checklist:

weigh myself: no

make bed: check

wash breakfast dishes: again, they were some of last night's dinner dishes. I really must do them after supper tonight!

Pick up house: no. But things are still looking half way presentable from yesterday. Well, OK, if you ignore the hallway outside the bathroom, of course.

You were all so kind about my living room yesterday, I thought I'd treat you to a box-free view!

the kids did all the decorating by themselves

swish and swipe bathroom:
upstairs: after neglecting this bathroom for about two weeks, it was an intense S&S, I assure you.
Downstairs: yes.

Laundry: Folded a load, transferred one, started one.

Calendar review and To Do list: no.

Do One Essential Task: No.

Weekly Tasks:
All caught up on Sunday and Monday's.

Tuesday's:
Vacuumed front entry way carpet and the living room (and removed ketchup stains). I still have to do the back entry and the stairs (which really, really need it!)

Wednesday:
Wash hardwood floors (a quick vacuum will have to do!)
Clean microwave, inside and out. yes! Finally. We had a container of honey spring a leak while it was inside, recently. Is that TMI?

Probably.

Happy Winter solstice!

The Checklist: Rerun.

I wanted to build on yesterday's momentum: and so I began going down the list of things to do on my Weekly Cleaning Schedule.

Weigh myself: check.
Whew, things are not quite as bad as I had feared, but the scales are definitely creeping back up. No surprise, there, really. I am thinking of doing a January "daily" of accountability on the blog, focusing on daily workouts and eating well at every meal. Today, I saw that Cathy Zielske is doing a year long course on just this subject. I'm thinking about signing up.

Make bed: check

Wash breakfast dishes: Well, they were really last night's supper dishes. But, yeah, what the heck, check.

Pick up house. check.


Right now, this could easily take most of the afternoon if I let it. So, I set the timer and focused on the living room and getting the ornament boxes and stuff put away.

Swish and swipe: downstairs, yes. upstairs, no.

Laundry: check.
I folded and put away a load. The rest of the process is held up waiting for a load of towels to dry (again).

Review calendar, make to-do list:
1. bake muffins (done)
2. make soup
3. bake cookies
4. start working on calendar. (oh yes, I'm doing housework, actually, as a way of procrastinating this task.)

Do one essential thing: check. Yesterday when I went through all those papers, I made a list of things I needed to do. Today, I took action on some of the items on the list. Go me.

As for the weekly tasks:

I'm catching up on Sunday's and Monday's tasks.

Tuesday's:
Clean out purse: check
dust: no. (surprise, surprise.)
vacuum living room, front entry, back entry and stairs: well, no, but I did vacuum the master bedroom and I'm quite happy I did.

Moving Forward.

Ever get stuck in a rut of nothingness? the blahs? the "I can'ts and I won'ts" --a toxic mixture of ennui and procrastination tinged with non-motivating panic?

My cold which hung on for two weeks had a lot to do with it, the fact that these are the darkest days of the year had even more, and the fact that Christmas is bearing down relentlessly probably made a substantial contribution as well.

I am behind. Every day this month I have bemoaned this fact to myself.

the table on December 1st

But I felt completely powerless.

the desk on December 2nd

Days steamrolled right on by and there was nothing I could do but pop in videos of Mad Men and watch from Season One to Four all over again. Once in a while I resolved to do something about it all. I know because I took "before" pictures.

the desk on December 13th:


the table, the same day:

I'm not showing you these nasty pics to embarrass myself, but to try and show you the sheer oppressiveness of it all. This, some would say, is the state not of my dining room only, but the state of my mind--tuned inside out and exposed for all to see. And if it isn't, it might as well have been.

Today, something changed. (Thank goodness)

Maybe it was simply getting out of the house for a while to go to my periodontist appointment, but something in me shifted. (Treatment did not go as well as hoped. They now have to peel back my gums and really clean things up under there closer to the bone. It isn't gum surgery, though. Not quite. Fortunately, I don't have to fret about it until February.)

When I got home, I took a couple of "before" pictures and got busy in the dining room.

desk:


table:

After working in the room for half an hour, there seemed to be some progress.

desk:


table:


Another 15 minutes and things began to shape up.

desk:

I know it looks worse--but look closely at that top tray--it's empty!

table:

Things looked like this after an hour. An hour!

desk:


table:

I kept puttering about while chatting with my daughter about her day at school, my husband calling to tell me he was on his way home (my cue to thaw the meat for supper in the microwave) and so on. Still, I was shocked to see these "done for now" photos time stamped a whole hour after the previous photos.



This isn't done. The two piles on the left need folders--the pile on the right is a mish mash of stuff that needs to be squirreled away somewhere.


I'd love to put a Christmasy centrepiece here, but for now it is home to boxes of tile. (sigh). That lampshade is going to be returned. It's lined with a shiny blue fabric and I don't like it.

I can't promise I will get cracking on all the Christmas stuff left to do, but at least now I feel like forward movement is possible.

Bit by bit.

Christmas Card Laundry Line

There are lots of ways to display Christmas cards. This one is my favourite.



They are on the wall of the front entry hallway with a candy dish of clothespins in the little alcove..



It was quite easy to put together!

Progress in the Bath

But not a whole lot.

I wasn't able to shake my cold and sore throat last week so the project stalled once again.

On Sunday, I marked where I wanted the niches. Daedalus cut them out--and we discovered that I where I wanted the top one interfered with the stairs. We'd forgotten about them.

So. instead of going into work for over time on his day off on Monday, Daedalus stayed home. He bought yet another board but has yet to trim it.

So, in essence all that's done is both niches are now framed out and ready.



I am having the worst time ever getting into the Spirit of Christmas. I don't know if its because the project is still lingering or if its because of the cold, but the last thing I want to do is decorate, shop and bake.