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Cleaning Up:  Somedays you just gotta get'er done!  |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 03 2008 : 9:56:46 PM
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Any of you ever have a day where you are suddenly filled with a determination and energy to get your chores done? I have been slacking a bit around here, and the house has been showing it. I finally got some energy tonight to stop puttering and just get something...anything(!) done! The living room was pretty trashed from Nora finding my stash of packing newspapers and some crafting I have been doing lately. (lots of odd bits of thread, yarn and fabric scraps all over).
I finally got the floor clean- in fact I vacuumed the apartment except the bedrooms and even shampooed half the carpet in the living room!
Now I am getting tired. I suppose the dishes and laundry will have to wait till tomorrow...or maybe I could make another doll....
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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emsmommy5
True Blue Farmgirl
1547 Posts
Angie
Buckley
WA
USA
1547 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 08:36:36 AM
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I love those moments of extreme house cleaning energy. I truly wish I had more of them. Living with a house full of "big kids" it gets a little overwhelming being a "flop" house! Everyone is working or going to school, so they come in around dinner time, drop their things and flop down, tired and hungry. I thought toddlers and little kids were tornadoes.... but big kids can be just as destructive to the cleanliness of the home! I threatened to make a chore chart with smiley face stickers the other day. They just laughed. =)
Farmgirl #208
What are you doing with your dash? |
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shepherdgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1008 Posts
Tracy
California
USA
1008 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 10:58:36 AM
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Angie-- I'd get out that chart if I were you!
When my family gets that attitude with ME, I tell them "I gave the MAID the day off, so clean up your OWN MESS!!!"
I have a husband and 3 teenage boys. I SWEAR the animals in the BARN are cleaner than THEY ARE!!! I can clean and clean and, if they are home, it doesn't look like I've done a darn thing! I will wash dishes 3 or 4 times A DAY if I want the kitchen to stay clean. If I mop, my HUSBAND is usually the first one to spill something or track it in. (SIGH....) Right now the fox tails are flouishing (Oh MERCY!!! I already had to take ONE dog to he Vet!!) and they are getting tracked all over the house. I sweep constantly!!
I swear they follow right behind me and whatever I pick up, or clean up, they replace it with something else, or mess it up! Like Sunday, I made the bed when we got home form church because I didn't have time before we left (I'm on Baby watch, so I was in the barn for awhile). I no more turned my back when my HUSBAND had ripped the covers back and was climbing into it for a nap!!! Oh I wanted to wrap those blankets around him and BEAT him with an iron skillet!!!! I was so mad I had to leave the house. How do you teach your KIDS to pick up after themselves and keep things neat if you can't even teach your HUSBAND?
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. ~~ George Carlin |
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shepherdgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1008 Posts
Tracy
California
USA
1008 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 11:02:06 AM
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Oh, and about those little "energy bursts?" Sure, I have them. When my husband and kids are NOT AT HOME!!! At least I get to enjoy a "clean" house for a few MINUTES!!! I think the house will be declared a war zone now that "summer break" has started for my kids. I will put out that door mat that says "My house was clean YESTERDAY-- Sorry you MISSED it!" (ha! ha! ha!)
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. ~~ George Carlin |
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graciegreeneyes
True Blue Farmgirl
3107 Posts
Amy Grace
Rosalia
WA
USA
3107 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 3:59:56 PM
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Oh that's funny, yes the only time I want to clean house is when the boys aren't home. And waking up in the morning to a really clean kitchen/house is like waking up in a hotel....rarely happens, but what a treat |
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catscharm74
True Blue Farmgirl
4687 Posts
Heather
Texas
USA
4687 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 4:05:10 PM
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That happens about once a month with me as I like to deep clean every nook and cranny in the house. It takes me about 6 hours of straight hard work and I am pooped once it is done, but I love the "feeling" when it done.
Heather
Yee-Haw, I am a cowgirl!!!
FARMGIRL #90 |
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Sitnalta
True Blue Farmgirl
4208 Posts
Jessica
NJ
USA
4208 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 5:41:13 PM
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Yep! I get that feeling ...but I ignore it unless I know Ive got the house all to myself. I keep vacuuming up what seems like the same pile of CHEEZ-ITs located right next to the mooshed bananas. THankfully my hubby helps but he gets a little miffed when I get my energy bursts and inform him that I want the house "COMPANY CLEANED"! He said there is no such thing and if company doesn't like how we live then they can go be someone elses company...sighss........
lol
Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug. -- Mark Twain |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2008 : 6:31:59 PM
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LOL! Yup! I put a ban on people coming to my house unless it is at least acceptable. I know I am a bit crazy that way...but...still...otherwise I am running around apologizing and cleaning at the same time. I guess I am a tidy person at heart surrounded by a packrat...not a good combo!! LOL
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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shepherdgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1008 Posts
Tracy
California
USA
1008 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 12:57:27 PM
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Oh Alee... I can certainly relate. My house is under constant "renovation" (some room is always being re-done). This house is so darn old! At one point my kitchen was FIVE different colors!!! (none of them matched. I was trying to pick a new color scheme) Now I'm going to re-do it AGAIN!!
There is constant chaos and clutter here. No one here helps me do ANYTHING unless I start screaming at the TOP OF MY LUNGS!!! Hubby has washed dishes.... MAYBE... Twice in nearly 19yrs of marriage. Don't think I've ever seen him push a vacuum, and the LAST time he "swept," he swept the coffee grounds he spilled UNDER THE STOVE!!! NO joke! When I pulled the stove out because I accidentally dumped something and saw all those coffee grounds you should have seen him RUN out of the house!!!! He was afraid to come back inside-- that's how MAD I was!
But I keep plodding along. Someday my house will be clean for more than a few seconds. AND my kitchen will FINALLY be finished! (and all ONE color!) Sigh....
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. ~~ George Carlin |
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oldfashioned girl
True Blue Farmgirl
2391 Posts
monica
oatman
az
USA
2391 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 2:57:48 PM
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| I can't begin to tell you all how much I love knowing that I am not alone !!! I started Saturday buying my supplies for homemade laundry soap. I got it made on Monday and I did two loads of laundry which I got folded Tuesday evening and put away Wednesday morning. Tuesday I woke up determined to get my house CLEANED UP!!! I started in the kitchen with an overflowing sink full of dishes and by 4 p.m. I was still in the kitchen. I was up until midnight picking up! It was nice though because before I went to bed I put on some face mask and soaked my feet in my little foot tub and relaxed, which I could actually do with everyone in bed!!!! Wednesday I was determined to finish and I pretty much did even though I vacuumed my kitchen floor 3 times after my daughter Hannah, who is 4 threw peanuts all over and then my 3 year old Olivia dumped her rice from dinner. I even fixed the screen door on my patio door so now I can use it. At one point it had a small hole and with kids you all know what happened. Isaiah who is 6 eventually had a large enough hole for him and his sisters to walk through!!! I used a lace sheer curtain for a screen and it turned out really cool. I am washing my last load of laundry now and then I am going to sew!!!!!!! |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 3:28:37 PM
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Wow Monica! Are you sure your house isn't mine! It seems I will work on the house all day one day only to turn around the next to find that some mischief maker has walked behind me and undone it all!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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oldfashioned girl
True Blue Farmgirl
2391 Posts
monica
oatman
az
USA
2391 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 6:02:09 PM
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Alee, You want to talk about mischief makers!!!!! I have been trying to paint my front room walls and it's not quite turning out right, so after re-painting the wall to start over, Isaiah took the paint roller out and wanted paint a board on the porch.The next thing I know he has brown paint on my one day old patio door WHITE lace screen. I spent 20 minutes scrubbing it to get most of the paint off. He's allowed out of his room when he's 20!!!!!!!!!
I really do love my kids!!!!! They really are a fun bunch even though they are very messy and always sooooo tired when it's time to clean up!!!!! |
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graciegreeneyes
True Blue Farmgirl
3107 Posts
Amy Grace
Rosalia
WA
USA
3107 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 6:31:34 PM
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| This makes me feel so much better - the housework battle is constant here. I am working against a carpenter - lots of drywall dust - , a teenage boy - that's all I need to say there - , a basset hound who sheds enough to knit a sweater with monthly, and a cat with the dirtiest feet I have ever seen on a cat who only wants to drink out of faucets thus resulting in muddy footprints on most of the surfaces that I really like to keep clean. Also it seems like every time I clean the whole house and particularly the bathroom really good, well that's when my husband decides to shave his thick, unmanageable beard - the clean sink is like a blank slate, needs whiskers all over it. I'm glad I'm not alone |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 7:21:53 PM
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ROFL! Oh I love this thread! I am so glad I am not the only farmgirl that battle the "clean-sink-whiskers" phenomena!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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melanie47601
True Blue Farmgirl
1949 Posts
Melanie
Boonville
IN
USA
1949 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 8:31:02 PM
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Yea I'm not alone! LOL I don't have the "whisker" problem. I have the "toothpaste all over the sink and coutertop" problem . And just what is in toothpaste that attracts ants?
I think my kids have a plot against my desire for a clean house. Hallie, she's 6, makes sure there's always plenty of laundry. I think she tries to change her clothes about 4 times a day. She can waller in a mudhole and go the rest of the day covered in mud, but heaven forbid she get a little drop of water on her clothes. She has to change them imediately. Caitlin, 11, wrecks havoc on a closet. Her idea of cleaning the bedroom is to get everything out of the floor and cram into her closet. As long as the doors close, room's clean. That's her theory on it anyway. Matthew,9, I don't think he goes out of his way to destroy the house, but he also isn't usually one for pitchin in to clean it either.
I have to brag on my boy, he was a big help today. Matthew helped me rearrange the furniture! I guess that's more manly and doesn't involve scrubbing so he's up for that.
And there's Ruby, our peek-a-poo. Someone told me once that peek-a-poos don't shed. I think what they meant to say was they never quit shedding, it's a year-round process. I swear everytime I sweep the house I have enough dog hair to make another dog.
Melanie
http://wheelsarealwaysturning.blogspot.com/ |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 8:42:35 PM
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I really lucked out with my dog- even though her fur is about 4 inches long, she doesn't shed too much....until spring and fall then we have a huge blow out and if the vacuum isn't run daily we find black dog hair EVERYWHERE! I just was in the kitchen doing the "dishes dance" (you know shifting this dirty dish here and there trying to find a space to put it so you can prep dinner?) Yeah. Somethings got to be done. Oh yes...I am having a garage sale in 2 days...anyone want everything?! lol
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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GiGi58
True Blue Farmgirl
71 Posts
Gayle
Billings
Montana
USA
71 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 9:02:11 PM
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My daughter used to have a plaque on her wall that read: "Martha Stewart doesn't live here. Deal with it". Now, she is not a messy housekeeper, but she has 3 children, she works at the hospital and teaches college in a town 40 miles from her town (they live in small town Utah), her husband is a volunteer fireman, an EMT and works for the State, so she can't possibly keep up with all of it, so she just has an attitude that you like her the way she is or leave her. People just seem to like her. And, her house is welcome to all. They just built an absolutely beautiful home, which they built mostly by themselves and she keeps it up rather nicely. She even had a room built off of her master bathroom with just a clawfoot bathtub in it and a beautiful sparkly black and crystal chandelier hanging over it where she get away with Calgon (but, she has to admit that she just doesn't find the time to do that on most days). Oh, how we all know that, right? Just some random thoughts from a mom watching one of her 5 daughters as she grows and raises her own family of children. What a joy it is, too! The house will always be there -- clean or messy -- but, those children will grow and be gone one day all too soon. I wish I had listened to those words more when I was raising my girls all by myself all of those years. Ahhhh...sitting here and reminiscing, I guess. Enjoy your evening ladies! Smiles and hugs to you all!
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. - Mark Twain" |
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oldfashioned girl
True Blue Farmgirl
2391 Posts
monica
oatman
az
USA
2391 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2008 : 9:39:41 PM
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Oh, You guys make me laugh so hard!!!!!!!!
Melanie, there is the same plot at my house!! One day Hannah and Olivia got into a bag of powdered sugar and had it all over themselves, the carpet, the end table etc. and it does not shampoo out well at all!!! Another time it was peppercorns from the kitchen all the way to the front room!!! They are so fun though! I don't look forward to the day they are to big to cuddle on my lap! I have the same whisker thing too! But it's not a guy thing because my dad used to lay a piece of newspaper over the sink when he shaved!!!! I wouldn't trade my bunch for the world. They are a lot of work but very proudly they are mine!!!!!!!!! |
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BarnChickCecily
True Blue Farmgirl
673 Posts
Cecily
Corydon
IN
USA
673 Posts |
Posted - Jun 11 2008 : 7:24:39 PM
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| SO glad to know that I'm not alone. One time, I wrote down all my chores and everything that involved keeping my house clean, grocery shopping, ...etc. Then I divided everything up into certain days of the week. I even had a day set aside for my scrapbooking, sewing and other crafts. But, with my job, it was just too hard to keep with the schedule because I would have to work overtime, or something would come up and all of that day's chores would be pushed onto the next... which was impossible to complete with that day's chores and the previous day's chores all rolled up into one day. If I could find a better way, I may try it again. |
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oldfashioned girl
True Blue Farmgirl
2391 Posts
monica
oatman
az
USA
2391 Posts |
Posted - Jun 11 2008 : 9:33:49 PM
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| Okay, You all have to check out flylady.com!!! Maryjane told me about it and it is really cool!!! It is tips and stuff on cleaning your house, but it's also funny!! I think you all would like it! |
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BarnChickCecily
True Blue Farmgirl
673 Posts
Cecily
Corydon
IN
USA
673 Posts |
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 06:44:31 AM
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| Thanks Monica! I will definately check out the website. |
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Sandra K. Licher
True Blue Farmgirl
1106 Posts
Sandra
Horseshoe Bend
Arkansas
1106 Posts |
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 09:04:51 AM
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Yes...Flylady is great and I actually put things on my computer to "pop-up" at certain intervals and I have my "life" divided into about 11 categories to try and keep things balanced and do a certain amount from each "category" every day...BUTTTTT.....my house isn't clean totally, my life isn't balanced totally (nor am I for that matter) and there are presently 1,316 things to do on my list...I know...I'm anal but I have a Palm Pilot and the software is on my pc and It actually DOES keep things from slipping through the cracks and helps me prioritize what's really important for that day, week, month. Usually Sunday afternoon I go over each category and sort of plan my next week. It has alarms and a calendar to remind me of appointments etc. But this list has been ongoing for 15 years so it has grown but it's all in there,,,daily, weekly, monthly chores and yearly and twice yearly and maintenance etc. Since I live alone I do it all; gutter cleaning, mowing, etc. So, I have my quarterly maintenance for the house chores in there too. I know it sounds like a lot but let's get real.....WE DO a lot..some days more than others. But this method makes me feel like at least the important things are getting done if not everything at once...it is ongoing and there are probably a lot of things in there I could get rid of since I had my career things in there too and now I'm retired but it works for me and does give my life a sense of balance....that one area is not getting overlooked too badly.
I was a computer science major so I'm sure the "nerd" part fits me well but maybe some of you will find it useful.
OCDC or wahtever that is in AR....LOL! |
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babysmama
True Blue Farmgirl
931 Posts
Elizabeth
Iowa
931 Posts |
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 11:38:05 AM
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I finally had a day like that today. It has been a month since the baby was born and I was just keeping my head above water (maybe literally with all the floods we have been having around here!) but today I decided to get stuff done so I wiped down all the kitchen counters and stovetop, mopped the kitchen and bathroom floor, put laundry away, made beds, and vacuumed the downstairs. I still have much more to do but I feel like I actually accomplished something today! Yay!
-Elizabeth |
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ruralfarmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
4309 Posts
Rene'
Prosser
WA
USA
4309 Posts |
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 9:35:56 PM
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GEEZ ALEE
I am missing you!
Rene~Prosser Farmgirl #185
" Plant goodness, harvest the fruit of loyalty, plow the new ground of knowledge. Hosea 10:12 |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 11:29:38 PM
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Awww! Rene you are so sweet!
I am taking a quick break to recharge the batteries. I am getting painting done tonight and wow! I never realized that the paint the previous people used was so...yellow. I like a nice clean crisp white paint or even maybe a touch of pink in the white. But if you want to paint yellow- I think you should be able to see that it is yellow. Sadly I am liking my bathroom a lot more now that the paint is fresh. Oh well!
I had to paint a door because an accident happened and a hole had to be wood puttied.
I am trying to get the painting done while Nora sleeps so the fumes can go out the open windows over night. Phew! I will be so glad by the time this is all done! I am ready for all this to be packed and done with! I am in the stage where everything feels like a mess but it should pull together quickly. I picked up Nora's room tonight and vacuumed and it took all of 5 minutes total with the reduced amount of "stuff" laying about. Tomorrow I am going to focus on the bedroom as soon as Doug is up, so I guess the computer room until he is up. I love my husband but I think this will be much easier once he is on his way as I won't have to dance around his sleep schedule any more! LOL
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our new blog:
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com |
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Sandra K. Licher
True Blue Farmgirl
1106 Posts
Sandra
Horseshoe Bend
Arkansas
1106 Posts |
Posted - Jun 15 2008 : 07:29:31 AM
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Alee you are so motivating! I moved to my parents house and they have both passed away so I have their furniture and mine in one house. Slowly but surely I am able to let go of some of their stuff and I am getting organized AND I need to get rid of a lot of my own things too. In my case, I think I spent the first 50 years accumulating things and I'm going to have to spend the next 50 getting rid of them all!
I started taking wallpaper down in the guest bathromm last winter and found out they didn't seal the drywall before they papered AND SO when I took the paper off some of the drywall came with it and now I have a REAL mess! So, I had to drive an hour away to get drywall compound and actually did a pretty good job of smothing one wall but I still have 3 more to go and then gardening season came and yardwork and there sits the bathroom just as it was months ago. Sometimes it feels overwheming but you all motivate me to "keep on keepin' on" and "git er done" so now it is getting hot down here in the South and similar to yor winters in the North, the house gets closed up, the ac comes on and we stay inside during the hottest parts of the day so maybe, just maybe I'll get that bathroom done!?! What bothers me is that there is a lot more wallpaper in this house and now do I just paint over it since it rips the drywall off or take it all off and re-drywall EVERYTHING....will I live that long to do it all?
Any suggestions from you all? I hate painting over it but I just can't imagine going through this in every room of this house practically...whew!
Are you moving Alee? Where to?
fondly........
Sam in AR..... "It's a great life if you don't weaken!"
Farmgirl Sister #226 |
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Cleaning Up: Somedays you just gotta get'er done! |
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Somedays you just gotta get'er done!
