Timmies, Tantrums and TSN Prospects:  Chronicles of a Serendipitous Puck Mummy

For reasons I will never understand, the rest of my family loves the smell of hockey gear.  Gabi is reluctant to wash her hands because she likes to smell the hockey glove perfume.  Noah reuses his underwear day after day after day until I have to wrestle it out of his grip into the wash.  My husband, well, I don’t even allow his gear in the house.

But sometimes a mom just has to do what a mom has to do.  So this afternoon, with children and husband away, I took both kids’ hockey bags into the laundry room and washed it all with the exception of skates and gloves.  They would have gone for a dip but I could not figure out a way to save the washing machine.  On the rest, I used hot water and the heavy-duty wash and then put it in the dryer.  It is tumbling (loudly away) as I write.  I recommend making sure all velcro pieces are velcroed and all string bits tied up.

This secret could cost me a lot of money if the stuff does not look like it is supposed to.  With an hour before anyone’s arrival home, I should have plenty of time to put the stuff back in the bags and bring it back up stairs, where they left it a few mere hours ago.  They will never know and I certainly won’t tell.  I only hope the smell does not give me away.

Summer is upon us! Meaning long days, the beach, watermelon, bright colours, lying under the air-con and relaxation.

The sketch above is a work in progress inspired my summer and laundry wednesday. Even though I’m wearing less layers of clothing (due to the warmer weather) I have a feeling my laundry pile hasn’t shrunk but grown in size.  weird.

Rather than bore you with all the door-opening I did today (although one was mildly interesting as it involved balancing an umbrella, two bags and a coffee cup), I wanted to share a good deed of my husband’s. (Don’t tell him I’m broadcasting it online, though.)

After taking out a bag of trash at my in-laws’ seniors’ residence, he started chatting with an elderly lady who was having trouble with the laundry machines on that floor.

She said she usually had help doing her washing, but the helper was off that day. She’d started her load but was a little confused about how to get everything finished. (Making matters more difficult, she found it hard to stand for very long, even with her walker.)

My naturally good-deeding hubby took matters into his own hands, checked out the machines, transferred her wash to the dryer and made sure it was on the right cycle. He then let her know when it would be finished.

“You have done such a good deed for me today,” she told him. “Your parents must be very proud of you.”

They were. And I am.

I have a confession to make – I’ve been keeping a secret from you all. I didn’t say anything earlier because I didn’t want to jinx anything. But it’s safe to tell you now…

Today, Will and I became the proud owners of a brand new washer and dryer!

Our brand new washer and dryer!

This is, perhaps, the most exciting part of owning my own home for me. You see, our apartment was on the 11th floor and our laundry room was way down in the basement. Any trip required a great deal of effort, and planning, because it closed at 10 pm on the nose. Not to mention the expense, and all for a sub-par washing experience.

Well, no more. These two GE beauties are going to make my life much easier from here on out.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some laundry to do.

Like some people, I’m a pretty big fan of Twitter. Like a far greater number of people, I’m not a very big fan of doing laundry.

Let me share a story that manages to connect the two.

When I started college, one of the many new things I had to get used to was doing laundry. I’ve since gotten over it really being any sort of a hassle, but somewhere along the line, I managed to draw a new personal tradition out of it. For whatever reason, every time I’ve done laundry, I tweeted something about it that included the word “fucking.” Now, granted, this is not a very nice word. Most people should not say this word or should at least take some care in using it because a) most people don’t find it particularly amusing, and b) that pesky roughly age 13-17 demographic finds it entirely too amusing. But I felt like the daunting task of having to do laundry did something to deserve it. Sorting colors, waiting for a dryer to open up, swiping your ID or procuring an obscene amount of quarters. Not pleasant stuff. Of course, now it’s just funny. Especially in how a few of my friends have adopted this habit as well. I can earnestly say that nothing warms my heart in quite the same way as seeing someone else tweet something along the lines of “Time to do some fucking laundry! #fuckinglaundry”

Yes, that’s right. It even has its own hashtag now. It’s perfectly acceptable either to throw it in at the end, or to just incorporate it into your tweet, like one of my friends did rather expertly with “What time is it? #fuckinglaundry time!” Those are the rules. Either syntax is perfectly acceptable! Why would I tell you that they’re the rules? Because this is obviously a thing that needs to catch on on a larger scale! True, my blog doesn’t really get enough traffic (at least outside of you know what) to start a social revolution (Twitter revolution?), but it’s as good a place as any to get the word out! Or, worst case scenario, to share an amusing anecdote to serve as a filler post.

Now go. You know what you must do. Unless you don’t have twitter, then you should maybe click on a bunch more of my posts and bump up my stats a little bit to make me feel better.

True to my word, Lewis is doing more chores around the house.  After grocery shopping tonight (he carried equal bags into the house), I began preparing dinner and asked the little man to go downstairs and take the laundry from the washer and put it in the dryer.  A quick look of distress passed over his face but he headed toward the staircase and I turned back to the stove to heat up some stew.  Halfway down the stairs, the pitter patter of extremely huge feet for his age stopped and he turned back around and yelled out, “Mom…which one is the washer and which one is the dryer?”

Trying not to laugh out loud at the question, I replied, “The dryer is the one on the right.”

He asked, “The one closest to the window?”

“No,”I told him. “The other one.”

He continued down the rest of the stairs, was gone for about four minutes and then I heard him come back up.  With his mission accomplished, he entered the kitchen as I finished heating up our food.  As I served the perfect meal for a chilly night, a sudden thought hit me.  Lewis took his bowl and began to walk away when I said, “Lewis, did you put the clothes in the dryer for me?”

“Yes,” he replied.

“Did you turn the dryer on?” I asked.

“No,” he said and walked into the dining room to eat his meal.

Well my weekend was full of “bad luck”, however I am not going to dwell on it and will be letting it go and hoping the new week ahead will bring the opposite, but I wanted to mention it because it put me and my schedule off track all weekend long!  =(

It all started on Saturday, 11/21/09.

I woke up around 8am, walked the dog, got into my running cloths and was just taking my first bite of my breakfast when the 1st of the bad luck hit.  After I did not feel like eating but I ate as much as I could of my whole wheat toast with peanut butter & sliced banana on top and ended up tossing a few bites in the trash.

Breakfast

My appetite pretty much was NON-EXISTANT the rest of the day.  I did nibble on a cookie that Jai Lei’s friends mom sent me home with after I picked her up from their house.  I also skipped my schedule run and grocery shopping trip as well, which threw my entire day off track. 

So as you might of guess lunch was skipped and later in the early evening the 2nd bought of bad luck hit, rounding out the “yucky” day. 

I was able to recover and ended up dropping my daughter at a Birthday Slumber Party that I originally was going to have her skip since she stayed Friday night out at a friends but I thought it best in light of the day we had.

On the way home I picked up “Chipotle” for dinner as I was in no mood to cook as you might have guessed.  I got my usual chicken burrito bowl with rice, black beans, pico, lettuce, corn, cheese & a little sour cream.  I usually only eat 1/2 but this time I finished the WHOLE thing as I was starving.

Dinner

Some much-needed REST came after dinner and then bed!

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Sunday, 11/22/09 was a little better than yesterday, however it was when the 3rd (and hopefully FINAL) bought of bad luck hit so I can’t say it was much better now!  =(

It started just before 8am and my morning went like this:

• Walked the dog
• Started laundry
• Cleaned the “entire” house
• Picked up my daughter
• Went grocery shopping

I did end up eating a little more today luckily, however I did miss breakfast and ended up snacking on a banana just after noon.

Snack

Then I made my husband & daughter some lunch and after that I also made some Chocolate Chip Cookies as a treat for them (and me too) as they have been bugging me to make for a while now.  I had a few myself, with a glass of milk.

Treat

I used the following brand when making the cookies.  Both me and my daughter liked them, however my (spoiled) husband did not so much as he of course is used to getting cookies from scratch throughout his childhood.

Dinner ended up being “Five Guys” as I again did not feel like cooking!  I had my usual little cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, pickles and ketchup and some of their amazing fries on the side, it was YUMMY….nothing like a good cheeseburger & fries to perk me up!  =)

Dinner

Now, I do not usually get “take out” or “fast food” twice in two days or during the weekend, however sometimes things go that way and exceptions have to be made!  Luckily, for me the scale did not freak out due to both!

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

WEEKEND TIPS!!!

Rule #5: Take a power walk to beat a midday slump.

Call it the 20-20 rule: As little as 20 minutes of low-intensity aerobic activity such as walking can give you a 20 percent surge in energy, research at the University of Georgia in Athens finds. “It’s paradoxical: Many people assume that they’ll get tired from exercise. But the opposite actually happens,” says study author Patrick O’Connor, PhD, a professor of kinesiology. “We’re not certain what the biological mechanism is,” he says, “but indirect evidence suggests that brain chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin are altered and cause the improved energy.” Besides, that quick recharge just burned about 75 calories. Sure beats adding 250 spike-then-slump calories’ worth of Skittles.

Rule #6: Do the two-step.

When you opt for the stairs, go at them two at a time — as long as you’re not wearing heels. The quick bursts of power activate your legs’ fast-twitch muscle fibers, which burn more calories than slow-twitch fibers. Plus, you’ll be using a part of your muscles that commonly doesn’t get enough action. “Fast muscle cells are designed so you can jump far, kick hard, punch fast — moves that you call on less and less in modern society,” says Scott Mazzetti, PhD, a professor of exercise science at Salisbury University in Maryland. “But unfortunately it’s a use-them-or-lose-them situation, so it’s good to activate them regularly.”

It’s almost Thanksgiving. I leave in the morning for Big Flat. I have done laundry but am I packed? Can you beleive it, I’m NOT! This is a woman who is always packed at least a week in advance of heading for her favorite place on the planet.

I’ve completed writing Hunting Mickey and am struggling to get it polished so that I can send it to my editor as soon as I get back from my trip.

Between computer sessions, I’ve done a few loads of wash and have had the kidlet schlep the clothes baskets upstairs for me but thats as far as I’ve gotten. DH is packed, DD has been working and trying to pack when she can…

We’re taking our guns and our ATVs for the trip. Target shooting, riding, it’s going to be a blast so long as the weather holds. DD is going to ride down with my mom. We’re taking the dog and he freaks out if he isn’t with me…plus I won’t have to beg for a smoke stop in my own truck! (LOL)

I guess I should crank up some David Bowie, grab the suitcases and get cracking!

I’ll be back sometime Sunday night and back in my office Monday morning.

…Perfect timing! The song that just popped up is Pressure by David Bowie and Queen…

Hopefully I’ll have some more good news when I get back! (Maybe a release date for Cry Wolf…more reviews on Noella’s Gift…a new idea or three for writing in 2010…maybe another contract….hehehehe)

See y’all in a week!
Hugz
Donica

I have recently discovered Charlie’s Soap – a powdered laundry detergent that is free of all those additives and unnecessary things that are usually included in detergents. I absolutely LOVE it! Charlie’s Soap has made my life so much easier in the past week that I have been using it.

After having great results with Charlie’s as a laundry detergent (You don’t even have to use fabric softener or bleach, and your clothes come out looking clean, smelling fresh, and feeling so soft!), I wondered if it could be used in the dishwasher or elsewhere. After a little research, it turns out that other people have also tried Charlie’s in other ways. I decided to use it in my dishwasher, and the results were AMAZING! My dishes have never been cleaner (so sparkly!). Next, I read that it can be used in steam cleaners to clean carpets. I tried that yesterday, and my carpet is now clean and soft, with no crunchy residue or yucky smell.

Did I mention that I love Charlie’s? It is such a time and money saver, too! I paid $9.99 at my local Whole Foods for an 80-load bag. I have done several loads of laundry and dishes since last week, plus the steam cleaning yesterday, and the bag still looks almost full! Plus, I was wasting a huge amount of time pouring liquid laundry detergent, fabric softener, and bleach. Now, I just scoop up a little powder (1 Tablespoon per load to be exact) and toss it in the washing machine or the dishwasher. So simple! It helps that my laundry room is located right next to my kitchen. I just keep that cute little bag of Charlie’s on top of my dryer, and I can use it wherever I need to. It’s also great for creating that minimalist look I’ve been going for lately…but that’s another post!

The boy is confused. Not like a meant to go left, went right kind of confused, but more of a I have night and day confused. “So when it is dark is when I am awake, right?” I don’t know what it is but ever since the time change our little sleep like a log baby has now digressed into play time is at two AM baby. Last night he squealed and played over the monitor for a good two hours in his crib. Now good to know he can entertain himself but, I was more entertained with the idea of sleep. Maybe he thinks since it gets dark at 4:30, that is when the evening starts. Whatever it may be we HAVE GOT TO FIX IT!!!!

On a lighter note, lets talk about spit up for a second. Have you ever sat in a puddle of spit up? Not by choice, or even accident, but really because you had no choice. 4-5 ounces of milk into the boy then, 4-5 ounces of spit up in your lap. You then my friend are instantly sitting in it. And with no warning what so ever, no time to dodge the disaster, no time to redirect the disaster, no time to grab a poncho or umbrella. I have had to change the sheets three times in the past week, on OUR bed. Yeah, he does fine when he is in his bed, but put him in our bed and here comes the thunder!!!So, again our child is facing confusion on whether or not the food actually stays in the body or if you just enjoy it and then spit it back up.

The newest happening with him has become his drooling. Though not always “funny”to most, his drooling does have a profound ability to make Abbi and I laugh. The other day he was sitting in his Bumbo seat and some how was able to accomplish a full drool line from mouth to lap. The other great one is when he is now up on your shoulder, looking backwards and you bring him to the front to look at him, you are now attached. Attached by this ”string” of drool that runs from baby to a large puddle on the sleeve of your shirt. We no longer have to give him baths, because he is able to now clean his chest area in drool. (Just kidding- Even more reason for a bath, I know, I know)

 And everything is better with a picture so….

Ready to Run with Mom

I meet (almost) weekly with two guy chum’s for a bit of prayer action, this morning was one of those mornings and was noteworthily brilliant. I’ve spent a lot of time in prayer triplets over the years and there’s nothing quite like them for spiritual growth. Whilst it’s really important that they don’t become self indulgent laundry airing sessions, the prayer triplet is about the only place I’ve felt safe enough to take James 5:16 seriously and find freedom in the glorious gift of repentance. I heartily recommend getting honest with two trusted friends, it’s so often been a place where God has ministered his grace and encouraged me to live in the fullness of that, in freedom.

As our modern day Starsky and Hutch helpfully remind us, ‘Do it… do it… do it’.

(Thanks guys, you know who you are.)

No, I don’t mean that. Us progressive ladies and our progressive hubbies/partners had better not think of that as a duty.

I’m talking about a few things I recently started doing that really Hubby should do for himself, and I’ve resisted until this point in our relationship because they seem so over-the-line wifely.

But when I resolved to start sweating the small stuff, I realized that waiting wasn’t going to help. At 35 he wasn’t suddenly going to start doing these things on his own. And so, I stepped in.

I now (gulp) pack my husband’s lunch, and sort his laundry.

In Cordova, Hubby worked at home, his office was upstairs. It just didn’t seem too weird to make enough lunch for two whenever I was hungry, and then shout up to him that food was ready. But here of course, he goes off to school everyday, without breakfast (he’s never been a morning eater) and doesn’t get home until 4:30. He either starves all day, or goes and buys lunch. Which at $10 a pop, adds up.

Here is a man who can barely summon the patience to pour granola into a bowl and top with milk. He was simply never going to start thinking ahead to make himself lunch.

To make the concept of packing my husband’s lunch swallowable, I am just making an effort to always cook extra dinner. Then I put the leftovers in a tupperware. All that’s normal enough. Then I just have to remember to set said tupp by the backdoor in the morning, with a utensil on top (morning’s are not his strong point).

$10 saved.

Now, the laundry. Here’s a question that’s always bugged me. Do ‘normal’ people wash their clothes after each wear? I notice they don’t wear the same clothes day after day, like I do…. So unless they’re washing them after each and every wear, what do they do with the half dirty clothes???? I mean, really I’d like to know. Because I just don’t think that ‘normal’ people have a pile on their floor that they sift through every morning for the fresher items.

My tack is, as stated, just wear the clothes. Day in and day out until they’re dirty (which for me, means quite some time). Hubby likes to change his clothes more or less every day, but will certainly accept that they’re not necessarily in need of a wash after every wear. T-shirts and undies, yes. Jeans and sweaters, no. But although he’s stellar at making The Pile, he doesn’t sift through to find a freshy, he just gets a new item off the shelf. The shelf of clothes that I have carried to the back shed, washed, hung to dry, carried back in, and folded.

He does do some of the laundry, I ought to clarify. But anyway, this is not a bitch-about-your-husband blog. The point here is that, aside from my energy, that’s a lot of wasted water, detergent and electricity washing clothes that aren’t really even dirty!

So I decided to bite the bullet and start sifting for him. Don’t ask me why this in particular was the hurdle, and not washing his clothes in the first place, but it was. Of course it takes less of my time in the long run. I pick out the pants and sweaters, check that they don’t have big spills on them (we do, after all, have kids, and he is, after all, in law school, to which some people suits). Then I fold them back up, return them to the shelf, and wash the rest.

That’s it! Easy! Money saved, energy saved, evil circumvented!

Ok, so it seems those nasty little blood suckers are back. No, it’s not election season ‎again – we’re talking bed bugs. That’s right – BED BUGS. These little insects have been ‎wreaking havoc for millennia, then in the 1950’s they were all but wiped out by the ‎pesticide DDT. However since then, through a variety of factors such as the banning of ‎DDT, increased international travel, genetic evolution and even global warming, they ‎have made a startling comeback. The US East Coast has been particularly hard hit, with ‎New York being seen as bed bug central.‎

So, what to do about it? A case could be made for unsheathing all those old nuclear bomb ‎shelters from the cold war and just riding it out until a cure comes along, but ‎conventional methods might be more prudent. Enter Bedbug.com’s line of anti-bed bug ‎protective products. ‎

While there are mattress, box spring and pillow covers, which are outstanding, and make ‎up the end cap of a total pest control solution to bed bugs (not to mention a nice party ‎gift), there is one product we wish to point out, if for no other reason then its sheer ‎uniqueness within the pantheon of bed bug products. Introducing the SecureSleep™ ‎Laundry Bag. ‎

Now, we’ll understand it if you don’t get warm fuzzies over a laundry bag, but give it a ‎chance, and you might. This, you see, is no ordinary laundry bag. Is it made of titanium ‎and kryptonite? No. But, it is made of 100% micro-polyester, which won’t allow these ‎insidious creatures to get in or out. Add that to a patented zipper design, known as Zip ‎Tech™ (what else would you call a patented zipper technology?), specially reinforced ‎seams, a rubberized liner for extra durability, and there you have it – one fancy-schmancy ‎and effective anti-bed bug Laundry Bag. Even has a lifetime warranty. Pretty good, huh?‎

Ok, we know that by now, you are probably asking why laundry bags are important when ‎it comes to bed bugs. After all, don’t they attack you in your bed? Well, yes they do. But ‎to get there, they generally crawl along the floor first, and yes, you guessed it – that’s ‎where most folks keep their dirty laundry (see elections above, as well).‎

Seriously, though, part of any effective bed bug prevention plan includes keeping these ‎bugs out of your clothing. The females of the species lay about 5 eggs per day, so what ‎starts out as a small problem with bed bugs can suddenly end up being a very nasty, ‎expensive, itchy and large one. Trust us here – you don’t want it. ‎

So, be pro-active and make sure you stock up on these beauties – use them for your clean ‎clothes AND your dirty clothes. Use them when you travel, along with anti-bed bug ‎luggage liners and travel pillows with encasement. Use ‎them while you’re away at college – bed bugs are a real big problem on campus, too. ‎Also, keep a few extras for your guest room, because goodness knows where those folks ‎have been! ‎

- OCD paper

- SF Paper proposal

- Marketing questions 19 and 20

- Sociology paper

- Sociology questions

- Science paper

- Theatre paper

- Hobbit Ch. 9-12 and discussion

- Art Sketchbook

- Mail stuff

- Pack

- Clean

- Laundry

- KILL MYSELF LOL

Download dan Print Voucher ini, untuk mendapatkan pelayanan Laundry 2 Kg, GRATIS…..

BURUAN!!!!!! Ada batas waktunya lho…..

CALL CENTER 93127500

Hello bloggies!  I hope you all had a great weekend and aren’t dreading Monday too much – it’s a short week!!  I will be working Monday and Tuesday and then have Wednesday through Friday off…yay 5 day weekend and only using 1 vacation day!

Today was lazy, I spent most of the day resting my tummy and sciatica on the couch and watched a LOT of TV.  There are some good cooking shows on Fitness TV when everyone else is showing junk! Then this evening was Dexter, of course.  Totally didn’t see this evening’s twist coming!!!

This morning Chris made breakfast and I totally wolfed it before photographing   He cooked up some bacon, hashbrowns and eggs and we made breakfast burritos. I washed mine down with an Amazing Meal shake made with the pom-mango flavor and OJ.  They were really, really good and just perfect for a lazy Sunday.  “Lunch” was a string cheese, a few turkey pepperonis and a sea-salt caramel granola bite (we ate breakfast pretty late).  Dinner tonight was roasted chicken, peas, salad and cheddar mashed potatoes.  The chicken was rubbed with a mixture of olive oil, melted butter, Famous Dave’s Rib Rub and Emeril’s Essence and cooked over a bath of chicken  broth and water in the oven at 450 for about an hour.  Before baking I shook some more dry seasoning onto the bird.  I think it turned out very pretty…but, the computer ate the picture so I can’t show you

The potatoes were boiled for about 20 minutes and then mashed with a dollop of light sour cream, a dash of heavy cream and a little shredded cheddar cheese.  The peas were boiled with a little butter and that’s it

Here is a picture of said beautiful chicken all chopped up .

My salad was romaine, cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, some croutons, a little parmesan cheese and homemade Italian dressing (well…the mix was from the store, but I did add oil/vinegar and shake!).

For dessert I baked up some boxed Ghirardelli brownies and made a “sundae” with brownie (that I wasn’t patient enough to let cool…so it wasn’t exactly brownie shaped) topped with a big spoonful of peanut butter (all natural creamy) and whipped cream.  I had a glass of milk on the side as well.

And now it’s time for my least favorite Sunday activity.  Folding laundry.  Ick, ick, ick, *insert gagging noise* ick, ick ick!!

Have a wonderful night!

It is sunday, dear readers, and I am in a blogging mood. I should literally be doing ANYTHING else right now. I’m behind on NaNoWriMo, I have annotations, biblical heritage and a paper to catch up on, MFA applications to fill out, 3 letters to write, I have three unread books sitting on my bookshelf, there is a pile of laundry about a tall as a small child on my closet…but no. I feel like blogging.

In the recent days I have decided to take my dad’s advice. Things have not been the most fun in Room 108 and its made things here a little edgy. My dad knows this, since he knows everything about my life, and told me that I have to stop letting outside forces ruin my day. Yeah, that is very basic advice and I could have worked that out for myself, but really, no one really realizes things like that until they are told to us by someone else. So it was difficult, but I have really let this advice sink into my life. And things have been pretty good. I mean, there are times when that isn’t going to work, but as a whole, these last few days haven’t been too bad. And I’m thankful for that because its the time of year when things start to pile up and if I was to let everything that happens effect my day, I would be one unhappy person. I don’t know if this new life method has let me stop caring a little about homework (I’d hope not) but its probably the reason I feel like blogging right now, versus doing homework or various other things. Plus, its really dark out already and I only get the urge to blog when its dark out now for some reason. *shrug* oh well. I don’t really care that I’ll have to stay up a little later.

Shane might arrive in Minnesota Tuesday night. Not many people grasp how excited this makes me. I think only my family really understands that when someone talks about thanksgiving I have to constantly fight the urge to scream. I doubt I will be sleeping at all tomorrow night because I’ll just want to get home and wait for shane. I have to sleep on an air mattress in the computer room instead of my queen bed which shane will be using, but I think it shows how excited I am when I saw that if it meant shane would stay forever, I would give up my bedroom and live in the computer room on a leaky air mattress. thanksgiving is actually fairly bittersweet for me now that I think about it. It is all fantastic until Shane has to leave. that part breaks my heart. I know that a cheesy overused statement, but there really isn’t another way to describe it. Its that way for the whole family really. I think it hurts all of us to see Shane leave. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it hurts me most, but I think because I even though was still a kid when we moved, but I was old enough to understand how close we all were to Shane and old enough to know that he was really important. I’d kind of latched on to that family and moving away from them was incredibly life changing for me. So every time Shane comes to visit its like before we moved away. We’re all together, joking around and just relaxing together. When he leaves its like we’re moving away all over again. We all stand in the driveway, hugging each other, saying our goodbyes and as he drives down the drive way we all go into the house and we all do different things. My mom starts to clean, my dad usually lays on the couch with the dog, and the kids all go off to our rooms. I have a room in the front of the house where the windows look out to the street, so I watch Shane’s car until its gone and then sit around in my room. Its incredibly sad to know that Shane is going to be gone for another year, but we all don’t seem to remember that when he’s with us. Its painful, but I wouldn’t give up thanksgiving week for anything in the world. It is probably the best week of the year for me and even though it ends on a sad note, its well worth it. I look forward to it every year, make the most out of it when it comes and when its gone, I start looking forward to it again next year. Years when Shane doesn’t come are years where my thanksgivings really stink. Last year what we did for thanksgiving was really great and important to do, but because Shane wasn’t there, my family tended to be more upset about that than understanding that we did what we needed to do. We called Shane after dinner and we all talked to him before doing our usual tradition of watching A White Christmas and it was obvious that he wasn’t having the greatest thanksgiving either and it made us all pretty sad. BUT this year will be different! This year shane is coming EARLY and we’re going to have the best time ever.

I cannot wait to watch A White Christmas also. That’s another high point. White Christmas with my family is something that you have to experience to understand. This is the one movie that all six members of the bertram family can sit through the entire thing and enjoy all of it (though none of us particularly like the Choreography dance). My dad sings along until we are all shouting at him to cut it out, we fake cry at the sappy parts that we all really enjoy and there is even a little bit of dancing. The kids and I are going to perform “The Old Man” when my dad retires as a joke. he’s told us not to many times, but we’re going to do it anyway and he will love it secretly.

Ok, its homework time. I’ve written more than I meant to. so if I don’t write before then, HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

love Emily

I promise, I am working on getting all my reviews up and in a more seeker friendly format. They are coming!!!

The Great Laundry Adventure is basically a fail. Hey, I tried! Life was just against me. I did learn some swell tips. I am not fool enough to try again for December. I am still trying, but it doesn’t look like I’ll be free from my laundry monster anytime soon. Perhaps I should just wait and try again in a few years when the children will be old enough to work a washing machine and put their own clothing away!

In the month of December, my house is going to be bursting with crafts! I like to do lots of Christmas crafts and games with the kids.  Of course, I will also be making gifts. (Though I’m beginning to think people don’t like homemade gifts. But as I tell the kids, the giver gets to choose the gift! So, I choose to make them! Sorry.) I’m rounding up crafts and recipes now and will be sharing!

I hate laundry. I hate cleaning the house.

I’ve been postponing this moment for 2 weeks. It’s incredible how you can find more and more clean underwear for 2 full weeks but today I reached my limit.

It’s not that when I was married I didn’t clean or do laundry but at least I wasn’t doing it alone and it helps to have someone else pushing to make it happen (as you can see I’m the best at finding great excuses… sorry, reasons, for not doing things ).

So I’ll get to it, I’ll do laundry (at least color, that’s really urgent) and I’ll vacuum and swipe the floor.

Have a nice Sunday!

More than 100 years ago, back in 1905 to be precise, this building which was part of the laundry in “Spindler’s Feld”, a part of Berlin Koepenick, was erected.

Being left on its own resources since more than one decade, this industrial ruin has a chance to stay alive, as the whole factory site is going to be preserved. Investors plan to use part the original buildings to create new housing and a small shopping center.

Welcome to Mama’s Laundry Talk!

I (Mama) have tons to say about laundry.  Really.  It seems like there would only be so much to say about washing clothes and getting laundry clean.  But there are so many aspects to discuss:

• How to really fold sheets
• How to sort a load
• How to actually get laundry put away
• Laundry ideas for families with more than the average 2.2 children
• Which clothes should be hung to dry
• What constitutes  a ‘delicate’ item
• How to wash cloth diapers
• Frugal Laundry
• Clothing Storage
• Stain Removal

All of these topics will be covered along with coupon links for laundry products, detergent reviews, and everything else laundry!

And a few recipes and household tips will be scattered in there too.  Because all mamas are looking for ways to help their homes run better, right?

Is laundry your dreaded weekly chore?  Stick around – it’s about to get better!

“Love is mental illness going in and mental illness coming out. In between, you do a lot of laundry”. – Steve Lopez

This ‘mental illness’ is in every kind of loving. We commonly think of ‘love madness’ occurring, maybe with the great passion of romantic love, but I assure you – madness is in the love found with a lover, a spouse, a parent, a child. This madness of attachment keeps our heads in a whirlwind of perpetual questioning; am I doing it ‘right’. is it ‘good enough’, am I ‘good enough’?  Repetitive tasks, like laundry, give us room to sort, clean, air, fold and put away the doubts that accompany all forms of love.

Ironically, at the end of love, there is a lot less laundry.

I’m confused.  Extremely confused.

Today, I was doing my laundry like a good little college student.  I separated my whites and colors, and put them in their respective machines.  I then patiently waited the 38 minutes for them to finish being washed.  When I went to put them in the dryers, I noticed something strange.  While my colors were their usual post-washing machine dampness, my whites were positively soaked.

Not really thinking, I put them in a dryer anyway.  40 minutes ought to be enough, right?  Well, 40 minutes go by and they’re still wet.  In fact, they had even created a little steam cloud inside the dryer.  So I put them in for another 20.  This was upsetting because someone had used the washing machines after me, and I didn’t want to make them wait for a dryer.  Alas, my clothes were wet and so I put them back in.  The 20 minutes go by, and I return to find that, not only are my whites still wet, they are now sitting on top of an occupied dryer.

So now I have to wait another 40 minutes for someone else’s clothes to finish drying.  So the time goes by, and I put my whites back in the dryer for another 20.  This time, I take out my towel because I have a sneaky suspicion that it is what was preventing anything from getting dry.  Anyway, 20 minutes go by and I check my clothes.  Good news!  The two white shirts in my load were dry.  My socks, not so much.  Now pretty darn frustrated, I threw the socks back in the dryer, said “screw it,” and threw the towel in again.  I set the machine for 40 minutes, and if everything isn’t toasty dry by then, I will probably scream.

Now, I wait.  I will update you on the further adventures of Dan vs. The Laundry Room as they occur.

Till then, the Wild has taken revenge for its lack of soda!

UPDATE:  My socks are dry!  My towel is not.  In fact, I’m running my towel through the wash again because it smells disgusting.  I used the other machine though.  Hopefully I will conquer the challenges of the laundry gods sometime in the near future.  Who knows though.

UPDATE: I have won.  My towel is clean and smells as it should.  TAKE THAT LAUNDRY ROOM!