How quickly the first half of this year has passed and we are now finished with week 26. I am pretty sure I have just blinked a couple of times since it was Easter and Christmas could not have been more than 8 or 9 weeks ago!
This week has been a mix of some really joyful moments followed by some not so good ones. I suppose life is all about accepting that with sunshine there will be rain. Wednesday was one of those object lessons for me. Did I learn what I was supposed to? Maybe for the now, but I am sure I will have to learn it again, and again, and again. I am grateful for each day's opportunities, even when they might not be what I was hoping for. At least that is what I keep telling myself!
Friday: I stayed at home to get ready for our house guests. Did I ever mention how much I detest house work? It is not joyous to me at all, however, getting things orderly and clean is beyond nice. Additionally TheHub decided he wanted Sneaky Pete's hot dogs for dinner. He ran by and picked up supper for us. Not having to mess up a completely cleaned kitchen was a true joy.
Saturday: I was up, dressed and ready early, so it was fine that My SIL and BIL got here before expected. She had planned a get together with all of TheHub's cousins at a restaurant in Tuscaloosa. We drove there together, and had what was really more of a small reunion than a luncheon. There were about 20 of us who all got to visit with each other, some we had not seen in over a decade.
After a long lunch/visit we drove back to Birmingham and just the four of us talked. We were about to start dinner when Son2 called and said he would like to see his aunt and uncle. We invited them for dinner and they came over to eat and hang out. It was so nice and they stayed until about 11.
A separate joy which was completely unexpected happened when I was saying goodnight to DIL2 and Son2. The family directly across the street installed the Mac Daddy of patios in their backyard/side yard. I am not sure if it was their older son (college sophomore) or younger son (high school senior) who was having a get together, but when I opened the door and we walked out on the porch to say goodnight, we could hear a bunch of male voices singing "We are the World". It took every bit of restraint to keep from joining in. How cool is it to hear a bunch of young men sitting outside and singing!
Sunday: We enjoyed the morning with SIL and BIL. They left to go to services at a church where their friend is the new minister and we had the rest of the day to just kick around. The day was not terribly hot and we sat on the screened porch with the ceiling fans running. I was in the rocking chair and made the mistake of closing my eyes. Best short nap ever!
Monday: My beloved sister and I spent time taking care of some business then did some painting/ cleaning at Moms house.
TheHub had a business dinner which meant no cooking! It also meant I had total control of the remote, so what did I watch? The college World Series game!?!
Tuesday: The Hub and I had a wonderful swim in the evening, then watched game two of the series.
Wednesday: If I were to choose theme music for Wednesday, I would have to pick Wagner. My beloved sister and I worked at Mom's house from 9 until 4. We had some workers scheduled and things went awry pretty quickly. I will just say it was a shit storm of a day, and my joy was that there were no bodies I needed to hide.
There were some true joys though. We (My Beloved Sister and I) left Mom's house (before the bad stuff happened) to run pick up some supplies and stopped at a crosswalk where some 4-5 year old day campers were walking with their leaders. While they were crossing we got to see Darth Vader, Superman, and a Roman centurion (or possibly USC mascot) I love kids!
Later, while TheHub and I were doing our evening laps in the pool, I looked up to see a gorgeous rainbow in the sky.
Thursday: We only have to finish the kitchen, den and main bath at Mom's. If the painter will finish a bit of touch up painting we will be set to start showing! I am beyond ready to get this chapter of our lives over with.
TheHub and I had our slightly competitive evening lap swimming event. I declare that it is only exercise and should not be a competition (as long as I am winning).
Here is a quick before and after of the basement room bath
Have a great day finding joy. It is always out there somewhere, even on horrible days (like Wednesday)!
I think I might have burst into tears hearing those young men sing We are the World. What a wonderful unexpected moment to experience.
ReplyDeleteThe bathroom looks phenomenal; it's amazing what a refresh will do. Good luck with the remainder of the painting. (Sorry about Wednesday.)
Truly walking outside and hearing the singing was a gift.
DeleteIm just glad no one lost their life because I was steaming!
I am sorry about Woeful Wednesday - and glad that there were no bodies to hide.
ReplyDeleteThe refreshed bathroom looks great.
I do envy your swimming. It is much my favourite form of exercise.
I love to swim and do not feel like it is really exercise because I enjoy it so much. The hardest thing is actually getting into the water, but once in, I am in heaven!
DeleteI was thinking of Flight of the Valkyries as you decried your day. SO you didn't want to keep the 70's wallpaper?
ReplyDeleteInstead of mentally singing kill the wabbit, I was mentally singing kill electricians!
DeleteNope the lovely paper had to go along with the accordion shower door.
That would have pulled at my heart strings too to hear those young people singing! Lucky you!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic week, well other than Wednesday maybe. But like you said, there were no bodies to hide so it's all good lol! The bathroom looks so much better! Oh and I would have joined in on the song, wouldn't have been able to resist. Have a fantastic 4th of July weekend!
ReplyDeleteI told my neighbors I was going to join in next time! They said they might have another party just to see if I actually would.
DeleteLove the fact that you still managed to find your daily joys, even on Wednesday! The bathroom redo looks great!
ReplyDeleteWednesday was not a fun day at all, but there is always something joyous!
DeleteI tried to find an electrician to see what he did, but there was none. I like the extra storage in the new bathroom.
ReplyDeleteThere is no additional storage. It is exactly the same footprint. We just had to do a lot of cosmetic work.
DeleteOkay, I tilted the screen and can see the old storage area that is now white. What did the electrician do that you mentioned your needing bail on Kim's blog?
DeleteI would have sung along. I don't think I've ever seen a shower door like the old one before. Glad you didn't give in to the temptation to commit murder. Blogging from prison could be difficult.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
If I were not so claustrophobic and the thoughts of being confined to one space so terrifying, who knows what might have happened!
DeleteAnne, I love how upbeat your posts are even when things go wrong. I love that you and your do swim laps together. Bailey ad I also enjoy doing that. I love that the neighbors boys and friends were singing. That fills my heart with joy and I can see why it did yours as well. :)
ReplyDeleteExcept for Wednesday it was a good week!
DeleteI don't thinkit is possible to hear young men sing here in Australia, it's "unmanly" or something. What a loss to us all.
ReplyDeleteThe bathroom looks so much fresher and nice. Great job
It was wonderful to hear them sing!
ReplyDelete