Pioneer Woman at Heart

  I'll admit, I have been terrible at cleaning the ceiling fans in the bedroom.  After dusting with the swiffer duster, I had to wash them with soap/water.  You can see the dust left on them after dusting them.  I'm also going thru to many duster refills, so I invested in this... The blue cover slides off, and is washable.  The unit can be attached to your extender handle you use for painting ceilings with (if you have one).  Works great for weekly dusting on these types of ceiling fans. My hands are cracked, dry and sore.  My back is sore by most evenings.  My fingernails are worn, torn and look terrible.   I'm climbing ladders unsupervised most days, but progress on the bedroom is starting to happen.   In order to paint, I had to climb into our walk-in closet like a monkey holding a flashlight.  I had to get our "paint" clothes.  Mission accomplished.  Oh, the reason for the flashlight?  Well, the switch i...

  Tiger when he was a baby.  He is under emergency vet care until possibly Saturday, depending on his prognosis.   He had an emergency ultra sound, which found crystals in his bladder, causing a blockage.  He was in miserable pain.  He is not being treated, but there is the possibility for kidney damage.  We are in touch with daughter E for updates. The painting progress on the bedroom is slow going for now.  It takes two people to just do the ceiling edging.  Our ceiling is 8 foot, 9 inches tall, so a tall ladder is required, as well as someone to hold the paint tray, and yes we will be needing to cover the entire bedroom floor with plastic.  There are two ceiling fans in the bedroom that need spring cleaned before we cover them with plastic to paint the ceiling as well.  I feel like this room is the one that will make me lose my marbles. I just want my bed back, so I'm hoping for at least the paint work done this weekend, in ...

  Renovations gone wrong.....so many variables to deal with this time around. My husband thought it would be grand to just take a short vacation while the bedroom carpet was removed and new flooring installed.  We went, we returned, and we are so frustrated right now. First, we hired the same person who did our living room and kitchen bathroom.  Second, we hire him for chicken duty, and watering seedlings, so we do know him. Came home to find the flooring installed in the wrong direction, and he knocked a large hole in one wall (we are still waiting for him to explain, but he will be fixing it on his dollar not ours, which also delays painting, which should have been done before new flooring....see what I mean about stress?). He also did not water my seedlings.  It appears that he watered one time while we were done.  He literally was here every single day and asked me and I explained how to water them (he's watered them before).  98% of my seedlings most l...

  To our surprise, guess who showed up?  Yep. Our handyman showed up, took all of the flooring out and started to put it back in.  It is looking so much better though. Two kiddos came out for a visit.  I made a batch of hummus, and it did not last long.  I'm glad they showed up, as one was needed for some work on the computer.  I had to link up late, as it was doing many updates (see yesterday's post for an update on the living room). Bad weather is heading our way, and we are down to one vehicle due to broken down parts.  Lovely.  I think I can hitch a ride with one of the kids for groceries this week (so I don't have to do it after dinner). Just to be sure we are stocked up good for a few days. They are predicting snow, 50 mph winds, possible power outages and more.  I stocked up on extra oil for the oil lamps and wicking as well, so that is off the list.  I do need to fill water jugs for the chickens (just in case).  If the ...

  I ended up cooking eggs for breakfast, using my English muffin rings.  I cooked bacon as well for sandwiches. Although upside down, the order has been started, and the one color I needed I found online with Michaels store.  I found a great deal, considering prices - buy 2 get one free, made the skeins $2.99/each (7 oz).  Free shipping.  I had to order yarn for me, so it got me the free shipping, but what a deal.  It's been shipped, so as soon as it arrives, I will continue making it. Flooring started to go in, but our handyman has a few doctor appts. this week, so it has been slow going.  My house is still a hot mess.  I can't put anything where it needs to go, so I keep telling myself to be patient. We are being told there is a winter storm coming our way.  It is to arrive before Christmas.  Lovely.  I'm checking freezer supply/pantry supply, paper product supply etc. and making lists.  Just in case. Our truck gets a new win...

  Daughter K came for a visit.  I completely forgot to have her go thru the Christmas stuff in the garage.  I guess that will be next visit. The living room floor is ready for it to go back in, but not until starting Monday.  He "doesn't work weekends."  Also, he said his back is hurting.  Not what we wanted to hear. In the meantime, I have a family member coming out to give us a quote on cleaning the gutters.  The leaves are all down, and it needs to be done. Daughter E's cat Tiger finally got the vet and got his shot. He's is feeling much better and eating again.  I found his special food online and he's a happy cat (can't find it in any store anymore). Not sure what the weekend will entail, but I do know we need to get all the porch furniture put into storage for the winter.  Right now the porch is literally the only place to sit, other than in our bedroom.  Yes, it's part of my stir-craziness.  I'm trying to be patient, but....

  Yesterday started with a very foggy morning.  Schools closed because of it.  Go figure, I needed to run errands as well.  I chose to stay in until the fog lifted.   It's foggy and warmer again today.  It's definitely odd weather for November in our parts. I had an errand day, so my day went fast, and we met up and visited with Daughter E and her boyfriend.  I didn't get a photo, but we visited with our "grandson" Tiger (the cat).  Oh, he loved on us.  He's not doing well stomach-wise.  She's taking him to the vet for a shot to help with that.  He eats special food, and she can't find it anywhere right now.  Pet food has been hard to get in our area. My 22-some year old kitchenaid mixer is on the fritz.  I added it to the list, but boy are they expensive right now.  Sheesh.  Everything is expensive.  Anyway, I use it all the time, and my husband even tried to work on it.

The refinery my husband works at had an explosion last night and two (last I was updated) were badly burned.  Please send prayers, although I do not have names. Update:  The two people died from their injuries. I have been distraught since we heard about this.  My husband has been working a supervisor position with lots of over time lately.  If you haven't watched the movie Deepwater Horizon, you really should.  Then you would understand why I stay busy when he is at work, to keep the worry bugs away.   Speaking of busy, I had a special request for a hair clip, so I'm working on that between everything else.   Daughter K showed up late, but showed up.  Her stuff is out of the living room, and she also helped me out by taking a small table. She always has stories to share and gives us the giggles and shares interesting stories. Her latest one was saving baby birds.  She literally had to hide them at her work place.  I guess...

  We had a heat advisory yesterday, and they were not kidding.  It was over 100 degrees and humid as heck.   I finally got bread and butter pickles canned.  Daughter E stayed until about noon and left to go enjoy the county fair with her boyfriend.  She saw I was crocheting a new item for the holiday craft shows, and took two.  I'll get photos soon.   We had a late evening storm that brought us a good downpour for a few minutes.  It was enough to give the garden a drink. There is a chance of rain today and tonight.  My kitchen floor is filled with items to donate again.  I'll be loading that all up soon.

Although we got zero rain, we had a beautiful sunset for a short time.  We can't really see all of it, due to the woods behind our home, but the sky was a pretty pink. I spent about 2 hours cleaning stuff from the upstairs.  Mostly, I spent time bringing down any larger items to donate.  I may have found a home for a pole lamp she left up there, and I have a kitchen floor full of boxed up stuff to donate somewhere.  I filled the trash, and put a few things in the burn pile.  Today, I need to spray Lysol up there, as I realized she had 4 animals up there, and I am not sure how well she cleaned, as in sanitized.  There is still much to clean out. I cannot tell you all how happy I am to have an entire summer of wicked, miserable work hours end for my husband.  He was home, and out mowing after work!  The handyman finished the bathroom, but left without putting the bathroom door back on.  My husband and I put that back up, installed a new toilet ...

  Sunday I had plans to do some long distance errands, but decided to do them another day.  It was predicted to storm all day, and go figure, it did not. I, however, cleaned up the kitchen, sorted cookbooks for donation, filled another box for Daughter K, caught up on laundry, and filled one box for donation.  I finally filled a tote with 50/50 vinegar/water to soak an old cast iron pan I was given. I already have a few cast iron pans, but no one wanted to bother with restoring it, so it ended up with me.  It's always nice to have an extra pan in case we need to cook over a campfire too.  You never know with what's happening in our world right now. Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.  I will link up when she posts. The weather . . . 85°F/65°F, possible rain As I look outside my window . . . It's foggy. Right now I am . . .  Trying to figure out the plan for the day due to more rain. Thinking and pondering . . . Where the heck am I...

I noticed when we stayed at the island the last time, she had black washcloths with the work "makeup" on them.  Genius.  I could just go to the store and buy black ones, but made one myself with cotton yarn to see if it would work well. I love this pattern, so we'll see how it goes and if the face makeup will stain on it or not.  I'm hoping it works vs. using my other lighter washcloths that do stain.  I don't wear makeup that often, but I am happy with this pattern, and they stitch up quickly. Thankfully my husband had Saturday off, however, he never took my bathroom door off the hinges for me.  It'll probably happen tonight.  We have a hired handy-man coming to help gut the bathroom (so happy for that). We finally picked up a new toilet for the bathroom, and wow the prices have really gone up.  $229.00 for one on sale!  Thankfully we had $140.00 in rebates from the kitchen floor repair. Three of the kids came over to have a lunch for Father's Da...

I am still cleaning and purging.  I got all the painting done on one side of the kitchen, and trim is next.  I cleaned the window wood work and put the curtains back up. I felt like once I was done, I wasn't done.  I always seem to find more that has to be done.  We are so pleased with the progress however. My daughter K left an entire set of baking dishes of my Mom's.  She said she had zero room in her apartment.  So....I've inherited those and have a place to put them, but that also means purging my old ones.  Mom's are prettier anyway. My new salt and pepper shakers.  We decided that if the three pieces of furniture do not sell, we have other plans for them.  We'll see.  The used furniture store is unable to buy them right now (her partner in the business passed away).  My husband used to work with her, and we knew she would be fair, but that didn't happen.  Selling on marketplace is so frustrating.  So many scams to de...

  The daffodils are in bloom right now.  I decided not to can wild violet jelly this year, and concentrate on low sugar jams.  Our biker friend we hire now to mow, has already mowed anyway (and then there was snow).  I brought the daffodils in just before the snow arrived. I decided, as I was cleaning out my hutch, that it was time to pass on the Wilton cake decorating books and cake pans.  An old neighbor, who used to babysit for us way back in the day (another town) is now considering buying them.  All the kids are moved out and the pans are for kids birthday cakes.  Oh, and this person actually decorates cakes and sells them from her home, so it will go to a good home and to good use. Funny story, while in High School, I used one of the pans to bake a cake for Biology class.  It was a bacteria cell!  Ha ha!  My husband got a laugh out of that.  I'm sure I have a picture of it in one of my photo albums (somewhere). I also used the...

  Here are the two blankets that my sister sent home with our Daughter K.  Of course she tells me to take care of them.  Urgh.  I'm sure that my Grandma on my Dad's side crocheted them.  I have no use for them, so I guess they will be donated.  The colors!! I cleaned out the walkway from garage door to garage.  Daughter K left a box of flavored waters in there from 2 years ago.  Sheesh.  Now I have room to store flooring for the living room. I also went upstairs to fetch packing tape, and found dishes in her old room.  She has a lot to clean out yet.

  I kept flowers from Mom's funeral (casket flowers), and dried them.  I sent the petals to an Etsy seller and had these made.  I also got a necklace for the two younger girls.  I am so pleased on how they turned out.  I'm so glad I did it too.   I ordered myself a bracelet from another store, that I absolutely fell in love with, and wanted to wear it in memory of Mom.  It popped up on social media one day, and it's from a store in FL, where they hold bike week, so I figured the sale would be legit. This is what they shipped me.  Ugly to me.  Not what I ordered.  I sent emails back and forth, and they told me it was one of a kind, and already sold, but yet it was on their site and he description clearly stated what I ordered.   On a good note, and I won't believe until I receive it, they are having the person make another one and shipping it directly to me.  It is handmade.  I'm waiting on a shipping label to ret...

  My husband is simply the best!  I was surprised with this delivery yesterday.  He knows exactly what I need and when I need it.  Mom loved blue roses and so do I.  They don't exist in the real world, but one year I found a blue rose plant at Home Depot.  I could not for the life of me get it to bloom blue.  It takes a certain soil to bloom blue, but I really, really love my surprise delivery.  I very well may search for a hybrid plant this year and try again.  Although Daughter K is "officially" moved, there is much still here for her to move to her apartment.  I plan to box up anything for her if needed.  Now that she is out, I spent a good day cleaning (but oh my, she left the upstairs, downstairs and bathroom a mess).  My fitbit has finally gotten back up past the 10,000 mark.  Yeah, there was no way I was logging my "stress" on that fitbit, as it was at a all time high (for several reasons). As soon as we toss the co...

  Although I thought  my brain would re-set, after a break, it has not.  Yesterday I forgot my husband's birthday.  Sigh.  My husband told me yesterday I was a "hot mess" and not to drive anywhere today.  There is nothing worse than instinctively picking up my cell phone to call Mom and realizing I can't.  I guess the ol' journals will be coming out again. Maybe designate one solely for chats with Mom.  It will take time to get thru this for sure. The chickens however, are back to laying a good amount of eggs.  I never got around to baking a breakfast, so that must be done today, or my husband has no to-go breakfast for work. The weather is warming up enough for drying clothes on the clothesline, so I'm going to tackle all of the remaining laundry today. I felt like everything, at a point of the day where I just wanted to relax, went wonky.  First my scanner froze in scan mode.  Then, when that was fixed, my emails were not going ou...

  I am saving this recipe to try this summer.  I thought I would share it.  Has anyone made this?  I am just now learning about it. I got some organic dandelion greens blanched and in the freezer.  There is only one store that sells them this time of year. It was another day at Mom's house.  I made two trips to the re-sale store in town (benefits area businesses).  It's been difficult, but the busyness keeps my mind off things.  I've been able to pass on some kitchenware to our Daughter K, for her new apartment. Clothing has been donated to a soup kitchen. My house is a crazy mess, so once Daughter K is completely moved out, we will start major repairs and updates.  We also plan to do a major clean up in the garage when the weather gets better.

  We got a card from one of my cousin's, and it was obviously opened by someone in the mail system.  It's sick that this happens.  They probably thought it was a birthday card and were looking for money or a check to steal. We also got cards and a beautiful wind chime from my husband's work.  Mom loved wind chimes too.  In fact, she gifted us one made of shells.  I can't wait to hang them on the porch this spring. I finally got around to baking a healthy breakfast, but forgot to take a photo.  It involved sausage, eggs, bell pepper, onion, jalapenos, garlic and dandelion greens. I've been slowly working on a menu this week, but I am slow joe fizz this week. My asparagus seeds are starting to sprout. My kitchen is filling up with packed boxes, for another move day for Daughter K.