Ready, set, go

Yesterday the installer came to measure the rooms for the new flooring.  I don't know how long we have to wait before they are installed since the flooring has to be ordered.  But that gives me time to decide about the paint color and finish getting the second room cleared out.  Ron and I have decided to paint the rooms ourselves.

Our Thanksgiving plans are to go to my daughter's house.  My son-in-law is cooking a ham and we are doing the turkey/dressing.  Daughters are preparing all the sides.  Should be fun.  Mike absolutely loves Thanksgiving because we load him up with leftovers.  We have a few guests joining us this year because the more the merrier.  It sure is more relaxing when you are retired.  I don't have to try and fit everything around a work schedule.  I LOVE IT!

I have to try and keep my tendency for perfection in check.  Since we are fixing up things in the house I can get a little obsessed with perfection and cleanliness.  When Ron and I got married I really worked hard to let it go.  When my hip got so bad it really was easier to relinquish control because frankly I had no choice.  But  now I feel great and it is getting harder to reign it in.  

I hate to say this but men are kinda like pigs.  They don't see dirt they just create it.  Ron is a big guy and sometimes he's like a bull in a china closet.  Somehow he can break stuff just walking by it.  After we got married he started using the 1/2 bath in the guest room.  I had fixed the room and bath up very feminine and it had just been redone before the wedding.  He managed to break the soap dish almost immediately. I think it is because it is such a tight space he can't turn around without hitting something.

I'm anxious to get started and even more anxious to be finished!

clearing the cobwebs

I think I'd like to become a minimalist.  I'm not sure I know exactly what that entails but I'm definitely thinking that less is more.  

Upon emptying the guest room I was aghast at the number of cobwebs I found and the dead bugs.  Because the room is small you can't really move the furniture to clean behind or under anything.  YUK........... I think removing carpet and replacing with laminate will make it easier to clean or at least I'm hoping that will be the case.  I'll put the pads under all the furniture legs so they won't scratch the floor but it also makes it easier to slide furniture.  It's a win, win for me.  By the time I'm done with this project I'll at least know the rooms are clean!

The wind is howling today and the temperature dropped to 44 which with the wind feels like 20.  The wind in Okla. always blows which is why I gave up wearing contacts when I was in college.  There was always something blowing into my eyes requiring emergency removal of a contact or two.  Just got to be too much of a hassle.  Of course those were the hard contacts.  I've never tried the soft ones.  Now that I have chronic dry eyes I don't think I could tolerate contacts anyway.

My girlfriend just had cataract surgery and has been able to throw her glasses away (for now).  They did say she may require readers later on after her eyes have completely healed.  She was blind as a bat without her glasses so this is a huge change.  Maybe I will just wait until I have cataract surgery and perhaps I'll be able to get rid of my glasses also. 

It has now been almost 4 months since we retired.  I have finally gotten used to not getting up every morning and going to work.  It's great!  I do lose track of the days a little but I just hung a calendar in the kitchen so maybe I can keep better track.  What a problem to have!  Of course if it weren't for Ron I'd probably be bored.  It's nice retiring together and having his companionship.  I'm so blessed!  I'll never take this time together for granted.

 

spring cleaning in November

We are working on replacing the floors in the two spare bedrooms.  We have one room emptied and will work on the other room tomorrow.  Of course now that the rooms are getting emptied it makes me want to get them painted before we move any furniture back in them.  One project always leads to another I suppose.

I can't count how many times I've painted rooms in this house.  I painted the outside of the house 3 times but finally had vinyl siding installed because I knew I was never going to paint it again in the remainder of my lifetime.  

We need some sheetrock repaired so we are thinking of just hiring the repair and painting done.  I haven't gotten an estimate yet and that might just change my mind.  We wouldn't be starting these projects before the holidays if my daughter wasn't thinking about coming home for awhile until she finds another house to purchase.  

Why is it so hard to pick a paint color?  I like the color I have now but I guess I think if I'm going to go to the trouble of painting I should pick something new.  But change the color then I'll want to buy new linens and the list just goes on and on.   Oh brother.......now I have to make decisions.

This is a hoot! Check it out!

Well, as of this morning I lost the 2 pounds I gained on our trip.  Thank goodness it was only 2 pounds I felt like I did nothing but eat while we were gone.

Yesterday I saw the doctor for my diabetic check up.  My A1C had dropped from 6.7 to 6.3.  He was very happy with that and all my other blood work was perfect.  Kidney function was normal this time because I have been drinking nothing but water and a lot of it.
Dr. A. said that if my A1C continues to drop he will drop my medication from 2 x daily to once.  Then if it drops again he will cut that dose in half. 

So many benefits from weight loss.  Not just the obvious outer changes but the benefits you can't see as well.  I feel great and have more energy than I've had in 10 years.

Today I helped out in the Pre-K class.  Today was pizza day.  The kiddos got to make their own individual pizzas.  What a hoot.  I have so much fun with those little guys and I get so many hugs.
 

We're Back!

Ron and I are back home none the worse for wear.  First of all we had a wonderful visit with Karma and Bill.  It was way too short but we hope to get together again in the near distant future.  

We had a few hiccups along the way the worst being we arrived in Las Vegas but our luggage didn't.  When we checked through Security in Okla. City I set off all the alarms due to my titanium hip.  So I received a full body search and our luggage was flagged by security.  Evidently TSA searched my luggage but failed to put it on the plane when they were done.  So Alegiant Air told us they would be Fed Ex it to us overnight and then send it to our hotel in Kingman, AZ the next day.  So we got our rental car and drove to Kingman. When we got to Kingman Karma and her husband Bill picked us up and we went to dinner and then to Walmart so Ron and I could get what we needed for overnight.  Can't believe I went all that way to end up in a Walmart.  But.........oh well.  

Of course the next day we had no luggage..... Called Alegiant and they informed us our luggage was still sitting in Okla. City.  To make a long and boring story short our luggage went to Tulsa and then was sent to Vegas and finally reached us on Saturday when we were leaving Kingman.  The next day we started the whole thing all over but I'm happy to say the luggage did make it back to Oklahoma with us.  It was never unpacked and I basically only had to wash what we had worn for 3 days................... 

But in spite of all that we had a great time.  Karma is just as I remembered her when we were kids.  She's precious!  We are excited to see them again and hopefully in the near future.

Mike did great while we were gone.  We couldn't get cell phone connection a lot of the time because we were in some mountains but that gave us a break from all the phone calls.  I had so much planned for him to do while we were gone that he didn't have much time to think about anything.  So it gave us a nice break.

Now we are ready to start the process of moving my daughter in with us.  I'm having laminate flooring put in the two bedrooms she will be using.   I've wanted to do it for a long time and now is as good a time as any.  It will be better than the old ratty carpet that is there now and will be easier to keep with her two dogs.  Lots to do in the next two months!

Vacations are great but it's always good to be home again.  And.......Bella didn't punish us for leaving her.  She's just happy to be home again too. 

We are waiting for the airport shuttle to pick us up.  I am so excited to see my friend.  It's only been 40 + years since the last time we saw each other.

Ron and I are feeling guilty about leaving our little dog.  We dropped her off at our daughter's house last night and we have felt guilty every since.  My daughter told me this morning that she is refusing to eat.  Guess she will be a skinny girl by the time we get back Sunday.  Poor Bella.....we have spoiled her rotten.

The computer is back!  I'm so glad to get it back and have it working.  Ron is still mad at himself for downloading the virus but that's water under the bridge.  The only problem is recreating what was on the computer before and establishing our bookmarks again.  There wasn't that much on it since we didn't have the computer that long.

My daughter is showing a strength I don't think she knew she had.  She is slowly beginning the process of finding a new normal.  She will probably have to sell her home as it is too much to maintain on a teachers salary. She is planning to come stay with us after the house sells and then take her time until she finds the best house for her needs.

Ron and I leave Thursday for Kingman AZ.  So excited to see my childhood friend.

Our computer is in the shop after Ron downloaded a virus that took over our computer.  I'm trying to post on my tablet so this will be brief.