Bringing Back the Cast Iron

I've made a huge mistake.

I have spent my whole adult life thinking that cast iron is for browning/cooking meat, and that when you season cast iron it is supposed to have a thick crust on it. I don't know how I got to thinking this, I can't blame my parents, they correctly used cast iron (although not often) throughout my whole childhood.

It all started with a pin.

(im not linking the pin because I can't figure out what pinterest did, and I have no idea how to do it)

source

But I need to give credit where credit is due, and she gets her tutorial from Black Iron Blog.

that's a beautiful pan! 

I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I interchanged the word "seasoning" with "crust of burned on shit." 

But my cast iron was nasty, and for some reason I thought that was okay. 

Anyway. 

I saw the pin and thought "gee, mine doesn't look like that at all" 

after clicking on links and watching videos, I learned that a good test of a decently seasoned cast iron is to scramble eggs in it. Watching the video of scrambling eggs in cast iron made me sad that I have been neglecting mine so much. But it also made me wish I had more.  All I have is a 12 inch skillet and a 12 inch pan. So I set out to gather more. 

Within a day of posting an add on a local page searching for some I had three new (to me) pans, a 9 (inch) 8 and a 6 1/2. I could easily tell that the 6 1/2 stated that it was made in taiwan. If I were a real collecter this one would go into the giveaway pile.  But right now this is just fun. I could also see that the 9 pan had some sort of stamp on the back, but it could not be read because of the thick crust. Then I set off to clean them with the method shown in the pin, and on the Black Iron Blog. I really wish I had taken before and after pictures. 

The really sad thing is my cast iron are way worse off than the ones that I bought off some stranger and he had them sitting outside for a few years. I used mine maybe two months ago. 

After two days of soaking in oven cleaner the 6 1/2 pan was ready to be de-rused and seasoned. The others still have some days left. Mine will be close to a week I think. 

Also on the second day I discovered that the 9 pan is an antique, the brand stamped on the bottom is Wagner Ware Sidney O from what I gather this pan was made in 1940's

I worked save my two pans from the horrible burned on ick that I had put on them.
Sadly this took much longer than the other pans. The pans I bought off some guy on facebook? a couple of days. The pans I have used for years? a WEEK.
I am a horrible person. 

so pretty

But after much work and elbow grease, I have 5 wonderful cast iron pans. And I use at least one almost every day. I love my cast iron, it cooks so evenly and hold temperature very well.

One lesson I learned, don't season your cast iron in the summer, in a house with no AC. I choose one of the hottest days (why? I dunno) and it got almost to 90 in my house with the oven on at 500˚. 

Just a friendly reminder, I was nominated for the top 50 Military Mom Blogs by VoiceBoks, you can vote for me here. Thank you for your support. 

Slowly getting settled

The last two weeks have been a mess. Packing, unpacking, looking for my jacket, finding things I forgot I had.

The actual move itself wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. They got all of our stuff packed, and delivered safely. Since it was just an overnight pack (they packed one day loaded the truck the next and delivered the third) they moved our pantry contents and all of our alcohol. Which included my large hoard of wine that I collected while pregnant.

They successfully took apart and reassembled the huge entertainment center that we own. We love it but damn, what was I thinking, it's enormous, and weighs a ton.

We got the house emptied had some guys come and clean, spend one last night on the floor, the same floor that we spend our first night on only 2 years and 2 months prior.

The next morning we got up early and packed out. We loaded our cars way beyond comfortable capacity with the things we knew we would need right away and the few things the movers wouldn't move (dog kennel, cat litter box, pack and play, vacuum, plants, and cleaning supplies, live animals.)

and we said good bye to the first house Evelyn lived in.

And the view we have grown to love. 

The drive down to Butte actually really sucked. The roads were much nastier than usual. But we arrived in one piece and met the movers and got all of our billions of boxes of stuff.

We have moved from a 3br 2ba with a living room, den and a 2 car garage on about 2/3 acre to a 2br 2ba with parking in the front yard on about 1/8 acre. So we do have a little more than we have room for, but we're working through that. The back yard is only about twice as big as the deck in the old house. But that's not really a bad thing. I have less of a yard to chase my dogs through when they won't come inside.

We worked very hard for a whole week unpacking and making huge strides in getting rid of stuff we never use, don't need, have enough of.

Everyone has been pooped out. We have all been sleeping pretty good. I don't know if it's because the stress of moving has passed. Or if it's because the neighbor dogs aren't barking all night.

Then Wednesday afternoon we finally got internet, And productivity came to a screeching halt. I have not touched a single box since Wednesday. Yesterday I didn't do anything, except tend to Evelyn and take the dogs out and shower. Today I at least left the house though, we went to get lunch and then came home to internet some more. 
We got netflix again, That's been the real time killer. I have watched the entire first season of Workaholics and the first season of Parenthood. 
The whole internet thing has been super-d-dooper because we have had satellite for 2 years, at a breakneck speed of 1.5 megabytes or something. Which is fast enough do download an entire album from iTunes in about... 3 hours. I could drive to target buy the CD and drive home in less time. Now we are about 10-15 times faster than that. 
But this weekend Paul will be home and we will do more unpacking/purging. I hope to get the nursery/guest room at least partly set up by next week, then we can fill it with boxes again and finish the living/dining room.

And that is all. I am working on some much overdue Evey picture posts. And brainstorming some exploring Butte posts in the next few weeks, Because you all want to come and visit Butte, Mt.  

DIY Cloth Diaper Detergent (and why it works)

Edited November 2014- I am not using this recipe any longer. Not because it didn't work for me, but for two reasons: 1. We now live in a humid environment and it solidifies quickly, and that is a huge pain in the ass. 2. Gain works just fine, and is easier and I am lazy.
I don't plan on taking this recipe down because I never had any problems with it working. I am now very busy in my life and would rather buy detergent than make it.

ETA: Jan 2014 I just wanted to not that I have made some changes to this post over the last year, but they are all in my washing cycle and stripping method. I still use my detergent and I still love it. I have been using it as long as I have been cloth diapering, so over a year now, and I do not have any issues. My diapers are clean, I have no poo stains, My child is rash free. I have seen no decrease in the quality of my diapers, except the velcro ones don't velcro as well. But I think thats because I never close the velcro before I wash them. All of my prefolds, BumGenius and covers still work as good as the day I bought them. If you have questions please e-mail me because many of my comments I have been unable to reply to because they don't have email set up behind their blogger name. I would love to chat with you if you have any concerns.

There are dozens of recipes for Cloth Diaper Detergent out there. I have done tons of research over the last few weeks because I wanted to do it right. Also I wanted to know why you weren't supposed to use certain things (because I'm that annoying kid that always asks why.)

**I am not a scientist** 

Nor have I ever taken a chemistry class. My final product is a powder detergent from other recipes I have slightly modified due to internet research I have done. 

Bar Soap: Bar soaps are made with oil and lye, both can attach to your cloth diaper and over time cause buildup that reduces the absorbency of your diaper. Also buildup can cause skin irritation on your babies sensitive bottom.

Borax: Great cleaning strength, breaks down well, not a great water softener. Breaks down into Hydrogen Peroxide which is a great cleaner.

Washing Soda: Very caustic, you should totally use gloves. Needs to be rinsed well, failure to do so can cause skin irritation of baby. But it is a great degreaser and great at softening hard water.

Baking Soda: Not as alkaline as washing soda, so no gloves needed. Not as strong as washing soda, but easily dissolves in water and washes clean. From my understanding it's sort of like washing soda but half the strength.

Oxy: Breaks down into Sodium Carbonate + Hydrogen Peroxide. The breakdown in water brightens and removes stains. Similar to washing soda and borax.

However through my research I learned that Borax and Washing soda can both breakdown PUL and prematurely age elastic (both found in covers). Which would really make any home made detergent bad. But I found that store brand cloth diaper detergent like Rockin Green contains Sodium Carbonate (washing soda) so I don't think it can be that bad, Sodium Percarbonate which is like sodium carbonate (washing soda) and Hydrogen peroxide so Oxy, which is very similar to washing soda and borax.  I know the chemical composition of the ingredients is different between mine and store bought, but they do all act in similar ways. 


One thing to be aware of when using store bought detergents, they are not all equal, you should be careful when using the same detergent as you do on your clothing, on your diapers.
Things to avoid:
Optical Brighteners, Fragrances and Dyes, Fabric Softeners  These can also deposit residue on your diapers that can irritate skin and reduce absorbency.
If you are a military, a military wife or a hunter you likely already avoid Optical brighteners and fragrances for your, and/or your husbands camo.

1c Borax
1/2c Washing Soda
1/2c Baking soda
1/2c Oxy

Sift all ingredients into a bowl and mix well.
Sifting ingredients created a bunch of dust and required me to not only clean all my counters again, but wash myself because I was covered in dust, mostly I think from baking soda, because it was the finest of the powders. 
I then sifted again into another container.
Poured into sealable container.

**HE Front Loader (although I don't know a top loader would be much different)**
Use:
Run diapers & covers through a cold wash with no soap, or 1 tbsp detergent if they are super poopy
Run diapers & covers through a hot wash with extra rinse with 1 tbsp detergent
Remove covers and hang, tumble diapers low.
(Once it's summer I will hang dry my diapers and covers outside, right now that would result in frozen diapers)

Updated 6/11/2013
Updated 1/7/13 - same wash cycle as before but now washing strictly in cold water, seems to have improved my electric bill and noticed no change in my diapers, they still wash just a clean.

first I Quick wash cold
Next I set my washer up on a Heavy Duty wash (HOT)
Set it for pre-soak (which is cold)
Deep clean (hot)
with extra rinse

I use about 3/4 tablespoon of detergent depending on load size, normal load is 3 AIO diapers and 6-8 prefold with 3 covers.

I hang dry or tumble in the dryer if I need a diaper ASAP, my covers don't go in the dryer.

Got this nifty little rack at Costco

I have very hard water up here in Montana so I have to strip my diapers about once a month, I still have not found a perfect way to do this, Currently I wash my diapers as listed above, and when done set the washer for a normal wash with hot water and squirt a glob of Dawn dish detergent into the washer with an extra rinse. Then I smell test, if they smell fine they are good, if they smell fishy or like ammonia I do it again.

ETA 
I have been using the Mama Natural way to strip my diapers for a while. I really like it and I think I have only stripped them twice since. I am guilty of adding a little bleach in every now and then though if we have super pee stink from a heavy overnight peed-in diaper.

It should be mentioned that I use prefolds and a few bum genius AIO's and I have Bummies and Thirsties covers. 


My Recipe for Laundry Detergent: First Try and Redux
Both (cloth diaper and laundry) detergents are safe on your clothing, but the Laundry Detergent has bar soap (fels-naptha) in it, so it is not suggested for your diapers. The Fels-Naptha makes a great cleaning soap though, great on dirt and stains of all shapes and sizes.


I don't think my detergent is better than a store bought (well maybe a little). But it saves me money and it gets the diapers/clothes clean.

Sources:
http://community.babycenter.com/post/a27556305/de-myth_baking_soda_washing_soda_borax_detergent_nerd_alert

http://www.diaperjungle.com/detergent-chart.html

http://www.littlefornow.com/homemade-detergent-for-cloth-diapers.html

http://www.thirstiesbaby.com/blog/homemade-is-not-always-best/


- Alana

Lets blog about not blogging!

I've been MIA still, despite my best efforts I've really not been online at all much the last few weeks. I have over 350 (it was 400 this am) blogs to catch up on in Google Reader. I have barely been on facebook except to stalk a few people. And I clearly haven't been blogging.

What do I have to show for it?

A clean house?
no
Laundry all put away?
no
Is the laundry even done?
no
How about the bathroom? That's been on your to-do list of cleaning for two weeks now.
nope.
Dishes, you've at least done dishes right?
only when I ran out of knives to cream cheese my bagel.

But I should have a decent paycheck headed my way because I worked a few extra days this week. And sadly I physically paid for that. I had some uncomfortable contractions off and on this week, plus some really sexy feet/cankle swelling. I have a friend who has never really in her life been on the internet, and she has barely used a computer beyond simple work stuff. So Paul and I visited her to set up her internet and get her iPad online so she can join in on all the social networking and stalk ex's like the rest of us.

Today I was super productive though, I got up and got my newspaper, which to my dismay had no coupons. But the Target ad was nice, and I may go buy a crib this week. I also worked on a project that Paul and I have been working on during our spare time for over a month now. We should finish this week and I'll post lots of pictures then but for now here's a sneak peek.

I also did the dishes (even the hand wash!) and made myself dinner. I need to get back off the computer though and finish some chores, I'm off work for the next week but I have an epic list of things that need to get done ASAP if I want to buy a crib and work on Baby E's room later this week.


Oh and I've been working on Time-Lapse photography.


I have a sunset that's a little better but I haven't put it all together yet.

- Alana

Do you Pinterest just to Pin?

I like to think of myself as an active pinner. I find things on pinterest and actually cook them, or make them, or clean them. Here are some of my pin reviews:

Source: crunchybetty.com via Alana on Pinterest

Okay I didn't follow this one exactly, but I did use olive oil and water and instead of the soap she suggests, I used brush cleaner. This was cool, but gross. My brushes were nasty. like really nasty.

Source: lifeingarrison.blogspot.com via Alana on Pinterest

 SunDried Tomato Cream Sauce

Again I didn't follow this exactly (I rarely do with recipes), but I was disappointed. Paul loved it BTW. I change it by adding chicken that was cooked with onions, and my tomatoes weren't dried, so I added them to cream sauce in the beginning. It think my taste would have liked it better if I had spiced it up.

Source: mmmisformommy.com via Alana on Pinterest

Crock Pot Ribs

Theses were an amazingly easy WIN. So much so I've made them twice.

Source: fabulouspinterestfinds.blogspot.com via Alana on Pinterest

homemade ranch with 1/2 the calories

this was mostly a fail. It wasn't bad, just not great.

Source: livingwithpunks.com via Alana on Pinterest

Floor Cushion 

Coolest thing ever, I just need to finish it. 

Source: erinerickson.com via Alana on Pinterest

Dog Bed

Cute and easy and a total WIN

Source: morganmoore.typepad.com via Alana on Pinterest

Awesome Smelly Room Stuff

This is great. sans the vanilla.

Source: diyhshp.blogspot.com via Alana on Pinterest

 Spoon to prevent boil over

Yeah, doesn't work.

Source: bathnbody.craftgossip.com via Alana on Pinterest

DIY Carpet Fresh

Okay I have made this but not used it yet. But it smells great!



Well that's all for today.
Time for me to be productive.

DIY Soap

This is a followup to: She's Crafty: Lets make our own soap

Last week I ran out of laundry soap (oh noes!) So it was time to make more. This time I still followed the recipe at Being Creative: Homemade Laundry Soap But I did one thing different.

When it came time to shred my bar of Fels-Naptha I decided to be lazy and use the grater on my food processor. Well this didnt quite work right and it just cut it up into uneven pieces of chunky mess. So once I had created this mess, I took out the grater and put in the blade, and pulsed it until I had created a powder, much like the other powders in the recipe.

I then combined all the ingredients and mixed.
Same as before, Just now there are no chunks of grated soap, it's all a fine powder.

One batch of the recipe and this is what I have:



Wine bottle to show size.

She's Crafty: Lets make our own SOAP

This week I tried two new recipes: Dishwasher Detergent and Laundry Soap


They both have pretty much the same ingredients so here is a list of what I bought. Oh, and I halved each recipe, because I don't clean often, and for me full batches of this shit would last a billion years.




1 big ass box of Borax (4.7 pounds i think)  ( about $4)
1 big ass box of Arm and Hammer Washing Soap (just under 4 pounds) (about $3)
1 big ass box of baking soda (about 4 pounds) (about $2)
1 big ass bag of epsom salts ( about $2)
1 small container of generic oxy clean (about $2)
12 pouches of sugar free lemonaid mix (generic) (about $2)
1 bar of fels napa laundry soap (less than $1 i think)
(please see origonal recipe for better instructions and measurements)


after the fact I needed to buy:
lemishine (about $5)
to treat hard water and film on the dishes.


So first I made my dishwasher soap.
I halved the borax and washing soap by weight on my food scale. Added my 12 packs of walmart brand lemonaid (NO SUGAR!! you want the plain little packets) then I used 1 & 3/4 cups of epsom salt (because I suck at math) then I stirred all that shit together and put it in the pretty 1 gallon mason jar I bought at shopco for $11 (yeah, I spent more $ on the jar than the total of the contents, whateves) and I loaded my dishwasher. I've never been so excited to do dishes.
well the first run was a huge fail. my dishes looked and felt sort of gross. Well i went back to the original recipe and from what I gather if you have hard water issues (which i do) than you really need to use a rinse agent. LemiShine was suggested. So today I trucked back to Albertsons and got me a container of powdered LemiShine. And that problem seems to be remedied. Also you can just put vinegar in your wash but I was too lazy to go downstairs and get it out of the washroom. (but not too lazy to go to Albertsons.... Shopping addiction? me? never!)
(please see original recipe for better instructions and measurements)

Then Today I made the laundry soap.
I started by taking the laundry soap bar and grating half of it into a big bowl. Then I added my remaining borax, washing soap, half of the box baking soda and the container of oxy. Stir. this was much harder to stir. It also produces much more stuff because the extra oxy and baking soda. But I got it mixed and into the jar (barely). Then, again, I was way too excited to do laundry. So I took the stinky dog blanket and washed it in the wash with no fabric softener. This test was more of an odor test than a dirty test. But after one wash the blanket had no more stinky dog smell!!
Also I have a HE front loader and I did some research and this recipe, because is so basic, and you need so little of it, is low sudsing, therefore HE washer safe! WOOT!
(please see original recipe for better instructions and measurements)

so I spent about $16 dollars and I have enough dishwasher/laundry soap to last me at least through the end of the year. Beat that. 

The only thing I'll have to buy maybe bi-monthly is lemishine and I am going to do some vinegar experiments and see if I can get around that. 

(just a little after the fact note. Since posting this 3 hours ago I have done 3 loads of laundry, now this may seem like no feat of greatness but my HE washer was running really slow before and I would be lucky to do 1.5 loads in 3 hours. So not only is this soap cheep and awesome, it also seems to be helping my washer run more efficiently) 

Naughty Panda and how to clean up her mess

(that's what we call Aiko when she is bad. she's my naughty panda)

Sometimes little miss princess pants has accidents. When she is home alone all day and she has to go she goes. But she has a tendency to go where i don't know, in a place that we won't find right away.

this is her 'i have to potty' face

 In the old house it was at the top of the stairs. In this house it's in the spare room. well now we block that off during the day so she only has access to the living room and kitchen and the accidents have stopped. I have cleaned up her mess, but there has been a faint odor that lingers, especially on hot days.

then i found: 

this stuff is amazing. i followed the directions and poured it on my carpet and let it dry and now the smell is gone! so for anyone who has a pet that has occasional pee pee accidents i strongly recommend this stuff!

I was very productive today!

Before this room (the dining room) had the treadmill against the wall that now has the wine rack, and the dining table was just shoved aside and totally inaccessible and unusable.

I moved the treadmill to the living room and I love my dining room now. I got all the floors clean and the bathroom done. I've done much organizing in the living room too, but it's still not quite photo ready.

Day Twenty Two

Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at

Oh, I am a terrible housekeeper. My house is rarely clean. I will pick up in the morning and by the afternoon between the dogs emptying their toys everywhere and me being incapable of cleaning up after myself, the house gets wrecked. I had breakfast 2 hours ago and my bowl is still on the table in front of me. I had a cherry dr. pepper yesterday and the empty can is still on the table as well. The sweater I was wearing yesterday is still on the floor too. I have a big issue with putting (and leaving) things on the floor. My house isn't unsanitary, I do the dishes, my bathroom is fairly clean, except for laundry on the floor. My house is just messy. I have improved over the years, I used to be much worse, way way way worse. Growing up my bedroom looked like a war zone. I remember at one point I had so much stuff piled on my floor it was legitimately dangerous, several inches and in places up to a foot deep of just stuff. I have the hoarder gene and sometimes it really comes out. I have majillions of nicknacks. But like I said, I am getting better, since we arrived in MT I think I have single handedly kept the Goodwill donation center in business. At least once a week for about a month I have unloaded a trunk load of stuff there (mostly clothes).

Adventure to Big Sky Country

Well it's the new year. Happy 2011!

I failed at the blogging thing in November, but the move was just way too insane. Obviously we made it back to America safe and sound, the flight was long and boring but we made it. We did almost miss our connecting flight in Tokyo because we only had about an hour, and that's not enough to pick up the dogs, and check them back in. We also were not booked in seats next to each other on the long Tokyo flight but some nice Japanese guys switch so we could be together.

The dogs and cat weathered the flight quite well and were happy once we finally got into our rental car and headed for Tucson. The drive was also long LAX to Tucson took us about 9-10 hours but we had to stop often for the pups to potty because their potty schedules were all messed up because of the flight. And we finally got into Tucson well after dark.

Our week in Tucson was full of good food and lots of sleep. We both ended up mildly sick because my sister is a disease carrier. We got to see some friends and family and picked up our new Jeep Patriot. Then Monday morning we packed up to head up to Montana!

The drive was rough, the first night we were trying to get to Bryce Canyon, Ruby's Inn Lodge, where we stayed 3 years ago on our way to seattle. It's a nice little hotel and it's pet friendly which is necessary since we have 3 furry kids in tow. It was a long day and about an hour before Bryce the temperature began to plummet. We got down to about -10 that night. Quite a shock since when we left Okinawa 10 days before it was about 75 degrees.

We continued on the next day and wanted to make it to Idaho Falls, but about 10 miles north of Salt Lake City we hit a massive snow storm, visibility was about 10 feet, after we passed a terrible accident (which we could hardly see due to the blowing snow) we decided to get off the freeway, we stopped at some truck stop real close to the Idaho border and sat for about 2 hours waiting out the storm. We were parked about 50 feet from the building and at times you couldn't tell it was there. Once the visibility got to about 100 yards we decided to get back on the road. We made it to Pocatello that night, we saw several more very bad accidents and decided it would be best to just stop for the night.

The next day was slow, we started out late hoping for the roads to be clearer, which they weren't we had to use tire chains for several hours, which meant going no faster than about 35. We made it into Montana and I saw my first ever bald eagle, I also saw a buffalo that day. Late that night we made it into Helena. We checked into our hotel and went to the bar for food, there we met our first (and so far only) friend here, Nick the bartender. We spent about a week in the hotel, we had Thanksgiving in a little diner on the side of the road. But it was nice.

Finding a house was a painful process, not much was available and the ones that were were either dumps or too small. We found one house that was just the right size but it was a shit hole, purple kitchen, cabinets and carpet from the 70's the rooms were all half painted and dumpy, it was awful. I wanted to give up, but as we were leaving that house an agent called me back about a house that she had just come available we drove out to see it and I started to cry. After a week of looking at dumps we finally found "it". Our paperwork cleared and we were set to move in on the 1st of December, the night before we went out to dinner to celebrate, we went to a chinese buffet. The next day we were both violently ill, and move in was postponed.

We finally moved in on the second and we got a futon mattress to sleep on and curled up on the floor and that's how we slept for about a week until our new mattress was delivered. We watched TV on a box and made dinner out of one pan until our express shipment got here, then we had more dishes and clothes but still no real furniture. On the 29th our household goods got here and now we are nearly complete. we have beds and desks and couches and TVs. We are slowly working on unpacking, yesterday I was useless, I think I unloaded the dishwasher twice and did some organizing in the living room. Today is shaping up to be the same. I'm exhausted from unpacking all day on the 29th and 30th my back hurts and I just want to lay around. Plus it's ungodly cold outside, -7. Yes you read that right NEGATIVE SEVEN, and it's nearly noon. we wont get much warmer today I don't think.

Coming Soon

I've infused some olive oils. 

They will take about two weeks to set, but I am really excited. 

but tonight I need to sleep, I am seriously lacking on sleep. It's been close to three weeks since I have slept more than three consecutive hours. I was blaming Paul but I don't think it's his fault. It's really starting to take a toll on me, today I was so physically and emotionally drained by the time I got out of school at 2:30 pm I was ready to cry, just because I was so exhausted. Now it's 9 pm and I've got my second wind. 

I just finished cleaning most of the kitchen because, well because despite the fact that Paul just cleaned it yesterday we have a minor ant infestation. I'm attempting to deal with it on my own, but they are coming from the island between the Living room and Kitchen so I'm not sure if I can stop them, I may have to call the housing agency. Who are already gonna hate me when I get done with school next week and call them with the list of things that needs to get done, that I've been putting off because I don't want them alone in the house with the animals, not that I think they would hurt them or anything, I just worry about them getting out. Now that I'll be out of school for the summer (online classes) they can take their time completing my list of demands :)

And that's all I've got. 

Have a lovely day. and comment, it's good for you :)

today i accomplished more that i usually do and i am so proud of myself! the day started late, again, as usual. but i got up and cleaned up the living room, then moved all the furniature around and mopped the hell out of it. i pulled up the rug in the living room and it was nasty, so that thing is going to the dumpster friday.
I got dressed and went to the 100¥ store for a few things, followed by the gym for almost an hour, i jogged/ran/speedwalked a mile in 16 min. thats good for me. i'm gonna have to work on that though if i want to do a 5K. then i did some strenght training, i am pretty sure i will be super sore in the morning, but the off chance that i'm not, i'll be heading back to the gym.
i ran a few more errands, getting dinner stuff. then i got home and started dinner. only to discover the garbage disposal wasnt working so i stuck my hand down it and pulled out like 40 little pieces of plastic and it works again!i must admit i did have an irrational fear that somehow there would be a power surge or something and it would turn on and eat my hand. but i had to do it myself (or at least try) the last time i called maintenance because it stopped working they came out, the guy reach in, pulled out a match that was lodged in there, snickered, and left. i wasn’t about to be getting laughed at again because i had crap just stuck in there.

the day ended with me doing lots of homework and some knitting. i'll post some knitting pictures later.
i feel so accomplished

side note, it was like 80 degrees here today,i composed a short letter

dear winter goddess,
i think you have us confused with Australia, were in the northern hemisphere, its supposed to be cooler. not asking for snow but a bit cooler would be nice.
k thx bai

The worst day of my life

not really but i am quoting Chapstic Blogspot in regards to Chapstic in the laundry. two separate loads, two separate chap sticks, two separate sets of stains on many many shirts and pants. woe is me. what have i done to deserve this...
first i will try my stain remover, then we will go on to the suggestions in this blog, what can it hurt.
i am also at the last of my Downy Simple Pleasures Rose & Violet which has torn me, we are moving in less than two week, undoubtedly i will not go through 52 loads of laundry in two weeks, so do i buy more so my remaining laundry can maintain the freshest scents of Rose & Violet, or do i admit defeat on go on and use the cheep ass 99 cent gallon of crap Paul got not realizing that it is important what kind you get. i think i will go with my gut and purchase more, i can still use it while we are traveling, and can leave it at moms house for safe keeping. she will love it. gosh i cant wait to get this moving stuff over with. speaking of which i really should be packing not blogging.....

Being a housewife is boring, though sometimes i wish i still worked, just so i would have something to do every day, i am glad i have the time i do, and the house is cleaner, and dinner is cooked more, but we also dont have the money we used to, we arnt broke but were cutting it tight here.
i went to the doc today, got a flu shot, right now i feel like crap, i'm going to b