Just Being Happy

These things happened this week:

*on Monday Hilary had a photo shoot so she dropped off Owen and Lynnlee before lunch and they stayed with us while she met the West Central senior and her mom at Prophetstown State Park for the shoot.  They also used our barn for some of the pictures.  After she was finished, she stayed and visited with us until it was time to return home to meet Landon's and Tessa's bus

*on Tuesday Hilary had a hair appointment so she dropped off Owen and Lynnlee at 8:15 and they spent the morning and part of the afternoon with us.  She took advantage of some kid-free time to have lunch with Blaine in Delphi.

* on Tuesday also Rebecca, our first realtor, stopped by at our invitation to see the house and what we had done to it since we moved in.  That was important to me because she knew the condition of the rooms when we purchased the house and knew what my ideas were for improvement and I wanted her to see what we had done.  She was shocked and surprised and pleased and very complimentary about our changes and the progress we had made.  She also liked the gift of the Thirty One bag and the bottles of wine and the candle we gave her as a thank you for helping us find the perfect house for us.

*on Wednesday we accepted an offer on our old house in Pulaski.  There may be some roadblocks with the house, but it felt good to made that decision even though the price was less than we had hoped.  The buyers asked for no inspection which made it easier since we think we would have had to put some extra money into the house that we really couldn't recover.  Keeping our fingers crossed that all will go well with it.

*on Thursday afternoon Tina stopped by for a visit after her Carroll/White REMC Board of Directors meeting.  It was good to see her and just catch up  for a while.  We enjoyed a piece of apple cake that I had made using my mom's recipe.

*Blaine came over on Thursday afternoon and he and Gary worked on the wood stove in the Party Barn.  They also worked on a couple of space heaters to get them working.  Between the stove and the space heaters the Party Barn should be nice and toasty for Kent and Sandy's 40th Anniversary Party next weekend.

*On Monday evening we decided to run into Lafayette and eat the 'early dinner' special at Texas Roadhouse. The meal was good, and the server, Zach, was very friendly, attentive, and conversational.

*On Wednesday evening Hilary called and asked if we wanted to meet them at Wings Etc for dinner.  So we did.

*On Thursday after they worked on the wood stove, Hilary and the kids came, and Tina left, so we all went to Monicals for pizza and salad and breadsticks.

*On Friday Lynnlee was still running a fever so she stayed with us instead of going to Auntie's house and possibly giving something to Owen.  She was such a good girl, and she is so comfortable here at the new house.  It does make me sad that she won't remember when we lived at the other house, but memories are memories and that is what counts.  She ate well.  She decided that going up the stairs was something that she could now do.  She liked to nap ON Papaw.  She is such a little sweetie.

*Today we went to Stone House for a late breakfast, then to Payless by the mall for groceries.  It was a bad time to go to Payless. Saturday for one thing.  Earlyvoting center for another.  While it was good to see so many people exercising their right to vote, the line was so long, snaking its way through the flowers, the dairy section and along the self-checkout registers.  Lots of people out this morning!

*A pot of Wild West Chili Soup is on the stove, waiting for macaroni to be added in about 30 minutes.  Hilary and the boys (including Parker) are coming over for dinner. Tessa is spending the night with Nola.  Blaine is working.  Parker is spending the night with Landon.  Chili and grilled cheese are on the menu.  There are a few pieces of apple cake (which Hilary doesn't like because the apple pieces are too big---can you imagine??), a peach pie in the fridge, and a bag of cookies from Stone House on the island for dessert.  Good times ahead.

And these are reasons why I have been happy this week.  I love being closer to the kids.  All of this makes me smile.  I am happy.

Spending time with The Littles

Yesterday Hilary had a photo shoot so she dropped off Lynnlee on her way to Prophetstown State Park for the first part of it.  Gary went to her house to pick up Owen from the bus since he went to developmental pre-school that day.

The kids played downstairs and had fun.  We fed them lunch and Lynnlee just couldn't seem to get enough.  Both of the kids were napping when Hilary returned.  The last part of the photo shoot was down with our new/old barn as the backdrop. 

I had just convinced her to take a nap on the couch for a while when Owen came downstairs, startled.  I think he had awakened and didn't know where he was.  He came into the kitchen at a trot, wide-eyed and shaking.  That movement awakened Lynnlee who was napping in the crook of Papaw's arm. With her awake and his noise, Hilary's nap came to an abrupt halt.

After that we visited for a while, the kids played, and then they had to leave because Landon and Tessa would be getting off the bus soon.

This morning Hilary had a hair appointment in Francesville at 9:30 so she dropped off Owen and Lynnlee at 8.  They ate breakfast, then had a full morning of playing in the family room.  While I baked a pumpkin bread, made chicken tortilla soup, and put together a pork chop crockpot dinner, then played quietly with Papaw supervising.

Rebecca, our first realtor, stopped by to see what we had done with the house.  It was the first time she had been her since our walk-through the day before closing.  So much had changed- floors, paint on the walls, appliances, furniture, window coverings, deck and porch furniture. I was excited for her to see it because she was very aware of the condition of the house when we bought it and she knew a little of my plans for decorating.  Other than the girls and Karen and Clay, and Kathy, no one had been in here to understand the before and after.  It was a fun tour, to say the least.  Of course Owen had to add a few exciting moments and Lynnlee wanted to be held when we passed through the downstairs.

After Rebecca left, it was lunch time, then trying for naps.  Hilary returned before the naps could happen.

Both of the kids are at such a fun age right now.  Lynnlee is developing more and more of a personality.  She understands the word 'no' and stops when she hears it.  She is on the move with her crawling, and soon she will be climbing the stairs and walking everywhere.  She laughs and giggles and kicks her feet out from the chair when she is being fed.  She loves Owen and we can tell that he loves her too.  They are best buddies.

Owen is talking so much more. Some of the words we can understand.  Some are totally indistinguishable.  But the important thing is that he is trying to verbalize and that is more than he was doing before he started the pre-school.  He is growing so much and he looks HUGE compared to Lynnlee.

The more time the kids spend here at our house, the more comfortable they are.

The more time the kids spend with us, the more comfortable they are with us.

It is sad to me that neither Lynnlee nor Owen will remember the old house, and there is a strong possibility that Cooper, Tessa, and Landon won't have really vivid memories of it either.

But I do know that memories are being made here, at the new house, and that is what is important.

I feel like life is much more complete because we can see the kids more frequently.

We are definitely blessed.

That Internal Clock

I am a morning person.  No doubt about it.

I enjoyed teaching classes at 8:00.  In fact one of my favorite classes at Ivy Tech's old building in Logansport was on a Friday morning and ran from 8 until 11.  I was always excited---my students were dragging.  But I brought donuts or muffins often and soon they woke up and were energetic enough to stay with me through the 3 hour block of time.

Being productive for me is better in the morning also. If I can get started on my to-do list before 9, I can cross off more items than if I start after lunch.  And in the evening? Forget it.

But when I am tired.   I am just tired.  My internal clock doesn't function well on very little sleep or a skewed sleep pattern.

So when we went to Las Vegas this past week, I was struggling.

If we had been by ourselves, the sleep time wouldn't have been an issue.  We would make our own schedule.  If we were tired, we would return to the room.  If we wanted to eat early, or late, or not at all, we didn't have to.  Napping would be acceptable.  Sleeping late would not be a problem.

But when traveling with others and having tickets for concerts, keeping to a time schedule is necessary

The first night in Vegas was tough  We landed between 8-9 LV time which was between 11 and midnight our time.  I had been awake since 7 or so and even though I had napped on the plane, I was still a little tired.  The excitement of being in a new place, picking up the luggage, meeting Kevin and Beth, waiting for our rooms, and finally actually finding our rooms took us to well after midnight our time.  Then hunger set it so off we went for food.  By the time we returned to our rooms for the night, it was close to 4:30 a.m. at home time.

Trying to adjust the sleep time was hard.   I was to the point of being too tired to sleep one night and that made for a long day following.  Plus all of the walking was exhausting.  Tylenol PM became my friend to ease the leg and foot pain plus help me with closing my eyes and resting.

Friday's return trip didn't help since we left just after lunch LV time and returned home to the dark skies of northern Indiana.  Early breakfast before we left the Luxor, then a late dinner at Chick-Fil-A in Merrillville on the drive home was the food for the day. 

Even after arriving home at 1:30 a.m. and falling into bed by 2 didn't make for a good night's sleep since we were up and around early Saturday morning to put the finishing touches on Karen's Surprise 60th birthday party that we were hosting in the Party Barn.  All of the guests finally left after midnight, so another late night was in the books.

It was no surprise that on Sunday evening while Megan was showing me her Amazon list for Christmas gifts for the kids that my eyes were barely staying open.

It was no surprise that my eyes were closed on the drive from Megan's to Hilary's house where we dropped off a new car seat for Lynnlee and the Francesville Tribune I had borrowed.

It was no surprise that I couldn't even get a good start on the email about the trip and the party that I was composing for Greta because I was SO tired AND I had taken a Tylenol PM.

It was no surprise that I was asleep when my head hit the pillow.  I don't even remember anything other than pulling the blankets up over me---and I was gone.

What is a surprise is that I woke up at 3:45 for the bathroom...and couldn't fall asleep again.  Why?  Thoughts of a million things running through my mind.  The major one was "Where are we going to put the Christmas tree?" which is silly since we have over a month until that question needs to be answered.

Hope my internal clock adjusts itself soon.  If not, there will be more early morning posts in this blog!

What Happens in Vegas---Needs to be Shared!

Karen wanted to go to Las Vegas for her 60th birthday, so that is what we did!

It was supposed to be a surprise, but that lasted less that 24 hours after Clay bought the plane tickets and reserved the rooms for us.

Then Kevin and Beth from Alabama joined in the fun too and flew in from Birmingham (Beth) and Minnesota (Kevin) to spend a few days there.

Highlights of the trip:

--Great flights there and back.  This 'scared to fly' gal is getting MUCH better with being on an airplane.  I closed my eyes on take off from Midway and opened them two hours later!  I couldn't believe I had slept that long or that the flight was so smooth. Returning home was easy also.  Gary remembers my first flight to LV very well, and this one was SO much different.  No white knuckles gripping the armrests---or burying into his arms!

--Uber experiences.  It was our first time using Uber and it was great.  All of our rides were good, except for a crowded backseat on the drive to dinner one evening, and the drivers were friendly and safe.

--Lionel Richie - wonderful concert!  He was very good and I enjoyed it.  Still not at the top of my list (no one can beat out Paul McCartney), but he was close!  The seats were great, the music fantastic but the long line to get in?  Endless.  Really.  And the walk there?  I am surprised I made it!

--Lights!  One thing I enjoy about LV is all of the lights.  Even though flying into Chicago on the return trip was amazing from the air at night, nothing beats Vegas.  We could see all of the flashing lights, the Eiffel Tower, the pyramid at Luxor where we were staying, the Stratosphere, the Statue of Liberty at New York, New York---but just all of the lights were pretty amazing.  And exciting. 

--the casinos.  I don't really like gambling.  To me it ranks right up there with arcade games, which I don't like either.  At arcades it seems like money is spent on silly (and some disagree with that adjective) games to accumulate tickets to redeem for cheap prizes that will just be thrown away or break before they get home.  Gambling is similar to me.  Feeding money into slot machines and coming out with nothing, putting money down on a table for Blackjack or poker is just like throwing money out of the window of a moving car.  Gary always says that we spend money for going to a movie or for a concert and that is entertainment.  We can take that same money and use it at a casino, and that is entertainment also.  True. But I still don't like it.

The funny thing is---when I play, which is rare, I usually win. 

The first time we went to a casino, maybe it was Blue Chip in Michigan City, I won under $50, but I felt guilt about that, so I put it in the offering plate at church the next Sunday!

We walked through the casino in New Orleans after the cruise last year, and I won there too.

So even though I didn't want to play, Gary finally made me sit down at a slot machine and fed in a $20 bill and I played.  And I won.  I cash out when I am ahead. Or if I go ahead and play (like when I was up to $35 on that $20) I only played it down to $20 and cashed out.  The last slot machine I played on Thursday night I was down to $2 and hit two bonuses and ended up with $25.  So I cashed out quick after that.  I found that if I start with a larger bill, like a $20 instead of the piddly little dollar bills or fives, and if I take a larger bet than the minimum, I do better and can play longer.  It is kinda fun, but not something I would want to do all of the time or with big amounts of money.  Ir would really bother me to put in a $50 or a $100 bill ever! I just couldn't do that.

Beth from Birmingham told me that she had seen people take the down payments for their houses to the casino in hopes of doubling their money ---- and losing it all.  Why would people do that?

Other things - hotels are busy at all hours of the day and night with check ins and departures!  I honestly don't know how they keep all of the registrations straight and the rooms clean and ready with people arriving and departing at all hours of the day and night. I know computers do much of that and that there is a system to it, but it was mind-boggling to me to see people arriving after midnight (like we did) and first thing in the morning and leaving in the early evening. 

Morality - that issue has been on my mind more recently after the Supreme Court justice controversy.  I know there have been brothels and red-light districts and ladies of the evening and escort services for years and years and years.  I also know that sexual abuse is wrong and that women AND men are assaulted, verbally and physically, and that it needs to stop.  But what is confusing to me is that a country whose women are shouting about abuse and being touched and taken advantage of is also promoting 'sex for sale' and it is acceptable.  The scantily clad showgirls on the street, ready for pictures with any man they could entice to pose with them, the little cards that both men and women were distributing along the sidewalks, the street advertising with strategically placed black rectangular strips, the dancers on tops of the tables in the casinos. 

The walking.  Oh my!  My Fitbit was clicking off those steps for two days and going into Overtime!  Over 21,000 steps on Wednesday and over 19,000 steps on Thursday!  My legs hurt. My feet hurt.  At times I didn't think I could even move forward at all.  But I did, and I enjoyed all of it (even though Tylenol became my best friend!).  Just walking through the lobbies of the hotels, watching the Dancing Waters at the Bellagio, looking at all of the crystal chandeliers and draped crystal curtains, walking through the mazes in each casino to get to a restaurant or to a shop, all of it was fun and entertaining and enlightening.  Plus I hope I worked off the extra points I accumulated, because it was SO hard to eat healthy foods all of the time when we depended on what was on the menu for each meal.

Was the trip fun?  Yes it was!  Am I glad we went?  Yes I am!  Am I ready to return?  Not for a while.  The next time, though, I want to go to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon.  Already looking forward to that!

Why are people so rude?

This is not a political post at all, but it could be.  I just don't like to discuss any type of politics so I won't.  But the generalities expressed can apply to recent political events as well, I guess.

The Weight Watchers program is changing---again.  It changes every once in a while, and I understand that.  Some things work, then foods change, and movement changes (who knew something called FitBit would take off?), and times change also.

Heck---recipes just aren't the same any more either, are they?  Some of my favorite recipes just don't taste the same because the 16 oz can that I used to use is now a 15 1/4 ounce can instead so there is a shortage on that particular ingredient which causes just a little bit of change in the consistency and the taste.

But I digress...as usual....

Changes have come to the Weight Watchers program to the point that it is now called Wellness Works instead, the group leaders are now called coaches and meeting places are now called centers. 

The Fresh Start program hasn't changed.  I know that some women who used Smart Points still use that program.  If it works, then they use it.   I know when the Fresh Start program began, it was met with a lot of opposition too, but now people are embracing it because they gave it a chance to work for them.

The focus now of WW is for more of an overall wellness effect.  I understand that.  Weight loss is still a component of it, and an important one, but more things are included to emphasize overall good health, which is important.  And while weight loss is my main goal, overall wellness has to be a focus too.

Technology has had a profound effect on our lives, whether we like it or not.  Paying bills online.  Online banking.   Ordering on Amazon and having the products delivered to the door by UPS or FedEx or in the mailbox.  Texting with quick questions.  Sending pictures to friends by phone.  We didn't even have a new home phone installed at the new house.  We didn't need it because we each have cell phones.  Digital tv.  Channels from all over the place instead of just the major 3.  Lots of changes all due to technology.

The complaints? Mainly by the older women, it should be noted....

The name.  Ridiculous.  If we are paying for weight loss, then why is the focus not on weight loss.

Wellness?  What are the leaders now?  Psychiatrists with degrees so they can tell us how to feel and how our bodies work?

Using the iPhone or smart phone to track food each day?  Better things to do with their time than sit there with the phone in their hands, tapping in each day's choices.  What is wrong with paper and pencil?

The app with incentive points?  Stupid.  Why do they need any of that crap?  You lose weight to ....lose weight.  No other incentive is needed.

Why would they want a gift card from Kohls as a reward?  They have credit cards which do the same thing (that one amazed me).

You know what they think of all of this new stuff - It sucks.  It sucks. It sucks. It sucks.

Over and over again  one older woman kept saying "It sucks. It sucks. It sucks." to our leader Sharon.

I felt so bad for her because she was being attacked about EVERYTHING concerning the new program.

After all, SHE is not the one who made the changes.  SHE is not the one who decided a new name would be a good idea.  She is only an employee that has to dispense information to the members at her meeting centers.

And she was attacked for it.

It is like telling my students that they can't carry back packs into the classrooms any more, that they have to be left in the lockers. I took all kinds of flack for that from the students, from the parents....but the decision was made by the school board and we had to enforce it in the classrooms.

Kill the messenger.

But honestly, if there were questions, they could have been asked in a civilized manner instead of shouting them out in accusing voices at Sharon.

It would have been more polite to allow Sharon to answer the question of how to get more information instead of shouting out that calling the 800 number was worthless, that the call went to California and they will just tell you they don't know anything.

Yelling "It sucks!  It sucks! It sucks!" as a grown woman to the leader of the group is just rude.  And pointless. 

If you don't like the program, then don't follow it.

If you don't like the way the meetings are run, then don't come.

If you don't want to pay the money for 'wellness which is a waste of time' then cancel your membership.

Stop complaining.  Stop yelling.  Stop being rude about it.

Grow up.  Oh wait..you are the grown up.  Act like one.

Family .... What It's All About!

Yesterday Megan dropped off Cooper and Lynnlee for the day, overnight, and this morning.  She and Matt were going to his cousin's wedding in Brownsburg, then the reception in Danville.  His folks were going also.  Even though Megan said they could come back and get the kids late in the evening, it seemed like a good idea just to let them stay overnight, settle them in, and give Megan and Matt a child-free evening to just enjoy themselves.

Cooper is always a breeze to take care of.  He listens well.  He understands what he can and what he can't do.  He will eat just about anything I fix.  And he goes to bed, goes to sleep, doesn't fuss, and doesn't get up until the next morning.  I have always been impressed by how well he goes to bed.

He and I went to Tessa's softball game yesterday afternoon and he was so good there too. Even though he would have rather found Landon and stayed with him, he asked once, understood (or at least pretended that he did) why I wouldn't let him just wander around looking for Landon, and sat and watched the rest of Tessa's game with me.

After dinner we noticed that the rains of the past couple of days had caused the creek at our house to become visible!  Only a few times soon after we moved did we ever notice water in the creek. Last night, however, the water was IN the creek, some of it was outside the banks into the grass, and it was moving quickly through the culverts under the drive.  We walked out to check it then after Gary walked further down the drive, he noticed a limb was down.  Cooper and Lynnlee had a ride in the pick-up with NO seatbelts or carseats as we went along with Papaw and the chainsaw to cut up the fallen limbs.  What fun! (Not so much for Papaw, though)

This morning Landon called and asked us to meet them at Red Lobster at 11 for lunch, to celebrate his daddy's birthday and his own adoption day.  We loaded up Lynnlee and Cooper, all of their gear, and took off.  Hilary, Blaine, and the kids were already there when we arrived, and Megan and Matt pulled in the parking lot soon after we did. 

The table for 11 was attended by two servers who were great with us and with the kids.  The guy was also excited for Blaine's birthday and even more excited for Landon's Adoption Day and offered free ice cream for dessert for those two.

As we sat there, waiting for our food to arrive, and even after it did and everyone was eating, I had to thank the good Lord for blessing me with such a fantastic family.  Sure, the kids were a little loud at times.  Yes, Tessa did begin to cry and move from her mom to her dad several times.  Cooper did stand up and move to the other side of his dad at one point. Owen had an outburst or two.  But overall everyone was fairly well-behaved and no one, that I noticed, was casting evil eyes toward us at any point. 

Gary and I are so lucky that our two girls like each other, enjoy being together, and want to celebrate special occasions such as these together.

We are lucky that our sons-in-law also enjoy our company and don't hesitate to include everyone in get-togethers.

We are fortunate that we live closer now so that we all can get together for more special occasions without it being hard to plan for timing.  All of us were able to run a few errands, return home for the afternoon, and enjoy some Sunday afternoon time before school and work began again on Monday.

We are also blessed with all five of the grandchildren.  Each one of them is so special, each in his/her own way.  Each adds a new dimension to our lives. 

And that is what it is all about!

The Benefits of Sorting...and Saving

Yes, I have written about cleaning out houses several times.  Well, here is another one, but a little bit of a different twist.

One of the benefits of sorting is finding treasures that are important to others.

For instance, when I cleaned out my room at West Central, I found the packet of items I had saved for Chris and Sharon Huber.  Angie's papers, her portfolio, some of the pictures that included her.  Since the clean out was quick (it took us two days, and I had to start at Ivy Tech soon after that) the boxes were stored in....the Blue Bedroom, and forgotten.

I found the packet again last week and took it to Chris and Sharon's house that afternoon on the way home.  They weren't there---or they didn't come to the door---so I gave them to Shannon and explained what I just wrote above.  She was very appreciative, and she expressed how happy they would be to have any and all things of Angie's and how special it all was to them.  Since I have been going through pictures and other things, I have found more including Angie, along with a thank you note that Sharon wrote to Angie for a Valentine she had made for her,  Those are in a pile to send to Chris and Sharon when the cleaning out process is complete.

Kyle Roth was in my Purdue English 101 class the summer that his cousin Tyler was killed.  Tyler was in a car accident on 14 east of Winamac at the beginning of June that summer.  Kyle and Tyler were very close, and one of the papers that Kyle wrote was about Tyler.  It didn't dwell on the tragedy of his death; rather it focused on memories and fun times they had together as a family and as teammates and friends  I contacted Tyler's mother, Melinda, on Facebook and told her I had found it, asked for her address, and offered to send the paper to her.  She was thrilled.  As I read the paper again, I was impressed not only with the content, but also with Kyle's command of the language and his style.   It was flawless---and a joy for this English teacher to read.  I know that Tim and Melinda will cherish the paper, and I am happy I could bring some good memories to them through Kyle's writing.

Auntie Ann was really into ceramics.  We used to joke about what kind of ceramic piece we would all receive for gifts that particular year.  She made ceramic pieces for everyone in her family and all of her friends. In fact I knew that I had been accepted as a Siemens when she gave me my first Creation by Ann. In fact she tried hard to pass on her love of ceramics to the girls also.  She took them with her to Ceramics sessions and helped them make items for 4-H projects.  Unfortunately those items made with Auntie Ann were the only ones they created.  But...in the clean out process we found two shoeboxes in a tub.  When I investigated, I found two china tea sets, complete with teapot, little cups and little saucers.  There could be more, but I didn't unwrap everything - yet.   The sets were very intricate.  One was designed with little pink rosebuds, the other with blue.  On the bottom of each piece was either the name Megan or Hilary or the initials M or H.  Also on the bottom of each was the date - 1990.  Then finally the words Ann + Bud or A + B.  She had made a tea set for each of the girls.  This made me cry.  I cannot even remember her doing this for them, and I definitely don't remember their ever playing with them.  I probably was too scared that they would break them to let them play.  So into a box or tub they went, never to be enjoyed.  I hope that they will pull them out and look at the pieces, then allow their daughters to enjoy them, when it is time and when Tessa and Lynnlee can appreciate them and care for them.  What a nice legacy to pass on to them!

While some of the items we have found make us wonder why on earth we ever kept them, or what they are, or what we should do with them now....others make us smile and know that others will enjoy them as we pass them on. 

To Say I Am Tired.....

..is an understatement.

Two years ago December we began the process of cleaning out Mom's house.  She was in the hospital for the heart valve replacement surgery and never came home.  Not because of that particular surgery, which actually was quite successful.  No, she had a stroke.  Then she went into two other facilities and she never recovered enough to return home.  I started cleaning out things while she was hospitalized.  We finally finished at the end of August 2017 after the auction.

After that, or maybe during the Wooster process,  we began the process of cleaning out Leo and Agnes' house.  First we bagged all of the clothes for Goodwill.  Then going through household possessions, furniture, things stored in the toy room---all of it was a lengthy process.  I felt like I was just a helped in that, however.  I was the daughter-in-law, not a daughter, so I did as I was told.  Still it took a toll, especially when the clean out times were sporadic, when there would be days and weeks and even a month or so when nothing happened.

Since we moved this summer and our house is on the market, we must clean it out also.

What I thought would be an easy process....isn't.  Moving some of the smaller things that we use all the time was not hard.  Even moving the furniture and other larger items at the end of July wasn't too bad.  But the attic.  The blue bedroom.  The garage.  All of those have been horrible for me.

First of all I didn't realize we had so much stored in the attic.  When Matt was pulling boxes out on Labor Day Sunday, it seemed like he would never stop.  It took all day with Megan helping and another day with just Gary and me to finish going through the boxes and sorting out the trash, the Goodwill, and the keep stuff.

When we finally found a dumpster to use, we started the other rooms.  Last week on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we worked on the Blue Bedroom.  What a mess that was!  I had no idea we had SO much in that one room.  On those three days we filled the dumpster.  The gray Escape was loaded with things to bring home and sort through again.  The white Escape was loaded with Goodwill bags.  Wednesday Gary opened the garage also to start pulling items out to pitch into the dumpster. 

The garage was another eye-opening experience.  So many boxes of old books that were moldy and falling apart.  Easy to pitch those in the dumpster.  So many boxes of clothes that had been packed away.  Why did we keep all of those clothes that the girls had outgrown instead of giving them to Goodwill at the time?  Games and games and more games.  Boxes of stuffed animals and Cabbage Patch dolls.  More books.  Christmas decor.   A box with all of the cups-of-the-month that Aunt Joretta gave me for shower gifts and many Christmases.  Scrapbooks from high school.  Clippings from my high school graduation.  The girls report cards.  Old furniture that had seen better days.  A bed with mattress and springs that went into the dumpster.

But we found treasures too.  Gary's silver tray that he won for Champion Shorthorn Steer Showmanship at the Indiana State Fair.

A book in Dad's handwriting that he completed for a project for Hilary.

A little pewter mug with Megan's initials that was a baby gift.

Megan's collection of Babysitter Club books.

My portfolio for Teacher of the Year with pictures and letters written by colleagues, parents, and students.

A saw that Dad had painted of the Pulaski Mill (that matches the tray I found and that now hangs on the wall above the icebox)

Yesterday was Dumpster Day #4.

Today was Dumpster Day #5.

I am becoming a regular at Goodwill because the guy who helps unload the donations recognized me today and asked if I needed a cart again like I did yesterday!

We are hoping that Thursday will be Dumpster Day #6 and then just one more will be needed after that---next week.

I hope so.  Because I am tired.

I am tired of pulling out boxes and tubs, opening the lids, and going through everything.

I am tired of deciding what to keep, what to pitch, and what to donate.

I am physically tired of bending and lifting and standing and sitting and sorting.

I am emotionally tired of the memories and trying to remember that I just can't keep everything, that they are just material things, that my memories will remain even if I don't have the letter or the picture or the doll in my hands.

But I have forgotten so much---and the items trigger the happy memories that bring a smile to my face and tug at my heartstrings.

I do know that once we finish this....and we sort through the boxes here and distribute what is theirs to the girls, that I will be done.  I am not cleaning out houses any more.  Done.  Finished. Over.

I hope!