[hikr00]

Hey all. Not much new to report. I did make it out today to pick up meds and milk. The storm that dumped 10” on us Monday night and Tuesday has melted down a LOT. Temps have been up in the high 40’s. This makes me happy because I always worry about the weight of snow on the roof. Dh and I can’t do ladders and the roof rake will only reach so far so we have to have someone come out if it needs cleaning. It’s supposed to rain tonight which I hope will melt more of it. Our granddaughter has a swim meet tonight but we decided not to chance it. If it’s raining and we have to drive home in the dark in the rain I will be a hot mess. I don’t like driving at night in unfamiliar areas so when you throw in the rain and the dark I am OUT.

Marthamfi oh dear. What a mess with your Mom and the ER testing. Your SIL sounds like an odd duck. Why pretend to be vegan? I’m glad you don’t have to deal with her too often. I’m on the first season on Brokenwood Mysteries too. I like it. Although now and then I have trouble understanding the accents. Lol. They’d probably have trouble with my Maine accent!

Zhoen I’ve never had bees except the wild ones that flit around here and there, I bet the ones at the preserve are the grandchildren of the ones you had! I’m sure that was disappointing though to bring them in only to have them bail.

CH I wonder if Meeko has spring fever? Ginger had a day last week that she was just all over the place. She settled down by the next day so we didn’t know what that was all about but I wondered if she was just kicking up her heels for spring? That’s so sad the vandals took out the bee boxes,

Renmerc446 we’ve always had to have our taxes done when dh was working because it was way too complicated for us. He worked out of state and at times out of the country on the ships so the taxes were a nightmare. I had a home based medical transcription business so I had my own paperwork to deal with so we found it easier to box it all up and meet with the accountant and have them work it out. That way we were sure it was done right. Now with us both retired we still have the accountant do them. It’s just easier,

SD well, that looks like a wild ride up the driveway! Glad you’re both ok and you didn’t hit the house or damage the truck. Scary ride though.

 

[dcompton]

It’s septic. Sigh. I guess that’s better than an issue with my pipes though. I have a call out to set up a service. I really liked the plumber I randomly picked from the Google list. And - be still my heart - he refused to charge me on the grounds that he didn’t really do anything. I told him he would be our community plumber. Lol.

I’m still plugging away on the phoenix. Half pattern, half making it up as I go since I keep getting lost. I would love to get it finished over the weekend, but it may be too much. If it’s ever finished, I’ll get a picture.

 

[renmerc446]

SD - hope things go well and you get home safe.

This has been a long week. I think I'm going to go to bed early tonight once I get my laundry done after work. Not sure if I'm going to putter around the house or not tomorrow.

Hikr: I work in the same state I live in, so my taxes were pretty simple until now. The biggest issue over the years were having to type the information into the online forms. I also went over my tax documents with my accountant before I actually did my taxes. They were pretty straight forward (just interest and dividends) and I was able to import them directly into the software, rather than manually, which helped a lot.

 

[Contrary Housewife]

Not much going on here after all. It's sunny and our overnight snow melted, and we even had a few flakes during the afternoon but not enough to stick. Chance of more tonight, probably no accumulation. Cold again tomorrow but 60's by Wed. Got a little tidying up done, but fighting the urge to nap. Corned beef is cooking and it smells so good!

Hikr, it's not really spring here yet, but Meeko sure is restless. She's fixed, so she shouldn't be wanting out. I think it is just kitty crazies.

DC, glad it was not your pipes. Hope they get the septic taken care of ASAP.

Hope everyone who is sick of snow has less of it soon. They said we've had 10+" here this winter, which is pretty low for us, and I'm not sure how they measured that because we only had real snow (over 1") a couple of times and it didn't last long.

Couldn't get motivated to work on the quilt. Not feeling it. DH was watching tv and I could not concentrate with all the screaming and foul language in the cop shows he likes. Monday I think I'm going to skip the quilt bee. No point driving down there with nothing to hand in. I may go down to the mall and cruise through Michael's and the pet supply before picking up a pizza for dinner, though.

 

[Spirit Deer]

We're home. Our plow guy was here not too long before we got home, so that helped. It was also 12 degrees instead of around freezing, so the snow was better. It was still a somewhat wild ride but without the adrenaline rush of yesterday. The truck is safely in the garage, so all is well. We didn't buy groceries because of possibly having to haul them up the slippery hill, but that's a minor inconvenience. At least the roads weren't too bad on the way home. It's still snowing a lot.

The guys ended the day by finishing the entire east wall in the kitchen. I knew getting Sheetrock in place would be a dramatic change, and it is. Very exciting today!

 

[dcompton]

Snow can be a pain to live with, but it sure is pretty!

The septic guy is coming Monday, so that will be another dreary real world problem taken care of. Instead of splitting it with the neighbors - we share the system, I’ll probably just pick up the bill. They’re planning a trip back home to the Philippines around Christmas and I know they’re saving for that. Anyway they paid for the whole system - it just went into construction costs and I was lucky not to have to put in a separate one. Part of my expensive week is just deferred a few days.

I hoped to get one of the three big phoenix tail feathers finished last night and almost made it. I’m totally ignoring the house until it’s done. I’m beginning to think I’ll never see the end of it. Lol. So I’m settling in with a book and ambitions to make feathers. Actually I think I have an audiobook on feathers, or one is available. Maybe I should listen to that.

 

[Spirit Deer]

I hope your septic bill isn't too bad.

I'm spending my morning imaginating. With things moving along like they are, I finally have time to think about upcoming DIY projects. There have been so many decisions to make and things to think about with windows, wiring, lighting, cabinets, and many other things that had to be dealt with over the past couple months, I had no time or energy to think about anything else. But so many big decisions are over now, I can relax for a while. Until this morning, I don't think I've realized how stressful and intense it's all been, so much coming at us at once, big things all needing attention immediately. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted.

 

[dcompton]

SD - I’m sure you’ve been running on adrenaline for months. You and DH need some time to just rest and decompress.

 

[marthamfi]

Yikes Spirit that is scary. You guys are getting so much snow. What is greasy snow? packed down snow? Can you guys give the workers a key so you don't have to go there all the time though it is really great they are getting it done so fast! You deserve the break.

ugh taxes..ignoring them until next month here. kids need to start doing theirs too but no accountants for them only us. Due date isn't until end of next month. Does your septic tank just need draining DC? or it didn't drain cus soil too wet? Can't wait to see the progress on the cross stitch.

I started my scarf and already frogged a couple of times not even a new pattern lol but one more flowery suited for the yarn colours greens and roses. I wrote a post and forgot to post lol yes I have taken my allergy pills today. Dh is out doing his reg stuff and we are all going to free celtic fest later when his car has the oil change.

My cats are fixed but it is warm so even buster is out during the day again here. Got the nest to work so I can turn the temp down so I can leave the door open and screen door propped up. She already freaked over nothing and busted though the door with the others over a squirrel?? can't see what. But like kids they can't leave the door closed and if you do 10 sec later someone is opening it inside or out. There is a helicopter going really low but that was 10mins later. have to look on twitter and see what it is..police or traffic.

Yesterday Heard noises outside and seems our neighbour who passed last year ..wife sold his tools..fancy stuff he used to carve etc. dh didn't know that they were for sale cus I am sure was a deal. now neighbour roof getting fixed again..so much for new builds. Someone hauling off a planer? looked like a big pasta machine the table saw table etc very fancy cus he was like that.

Friday was going to visit neighbour but took my mom shopping and to med building for test kits. she is getting checked inside out. she said it was just a blood test and 10sec ekg not done well cus she has had lots when she went back to er. He was making like she needed mri death door etc. so we both got shopping and library done. The doc didn't phone me for teleappt just sent my prescription to walmart who phd me. first time that has happened.

lol Hikr is your accent like Norm on this old house? New Zealand accents aren't as bad to understand as Aussie ones for me though some of the words of course are a challenge for slang. I will send you a message. Westcoast BC is very what can you say granola hippie lol My sil is just trendy for the sake of being trendy. Like most like that insecure I guess. Don't need people who act younger then my kids lol

all the new ads are out.. been good!! though fabric land is calling me.. A host I don't like in GBBO is leaving and the new one is great. We are always a season behind though with those shows here.

 

[Spirit Deer]

Just when we thought we'd get a weekend off, but no. sigh We thought we had enough scrap insulation to finish drywall, but we can't remember if the laundry room insulation got removed or not. If so, we will need to get more tomorrow. So we're off to town to see what's what and take the island cabinets out of the van if we need to. Wish us luck...

 

[marthamfi]

Fingers crossed! I hope you aren't getting more snow. So weird I am getting fabulous Dance and Stage wear ads on this thread today.. CH think they are meant for you lol Here is the latest sets. Have leftover bits of yarn maybe should ask ds if he wants a granny vest since apparently that is part of the new latest spring crochet patterns ha.

 

[hikr00]

Renmerc446 you reminded me I need to do laundry tonight. I’ve been putting it off for the last few days and it needs to be done. I will wash and dry clothes for days but folding and putting them away takes seven to ten business days. I just can’t pull it together!

CH Kitty crazies could definitely be it. Dh has been calling Ginger “ThunderPaws” because she’s increased her runs around the house and jumping up in her cat tree. She sounds like a herd of Buffalo running through.

SD we got the 10” of snow Tuesday and part of Wednesday but it’s melted a LOT. The temps were in the mid to upper 40’s the rest of the week so it’s been a huge help. Most of the roof is clear too thanks to the melting. I really hope that was the last big snowstorm of the season for us.

DC I agree, the snow is beautiful especially when it first falls. By the time we get to March it looks tired and gray etc.

Marthamfi I cannot wait until we can open the front door and just be able to have the screen door. I love the breeze through the screen. I love having open windows too for the same reason. I haven’t heard Norm from This Old House in years! I don’t remember his accent. Lol. If you get the Magnolia Channel there’s a show called “Maine Cabin Masters” and they have the accent. We tend to drop the “R” at the end of a word and insert an “H” instead. Like I drove the “cah”. My Dhs accent is stronger than mine though.

 

[renmerc446]

We got almost no snow in my area this year. I think we had maybe about 3-4 snow showers. Only had one time when it stuck for any length of time, that I can remember but it could've been twice. We did get rain, though, that's a good thing - not counting the tornado last month.

Ended up going out briefly this morning and spending most of the day at home. There was a worldbuilding virtual 'convention' today that I watched. I didn't find out about until yesterday. It was streamed on Twitch.tv and was very well done. All the panel/seminars were on time, didn't run over, and only had one minor 'technical difficulty' (speaker needed to put his ear phones in). It continues tomorrow but I'm not sure I'm going to watch that.

I did get some work done on the stash-gan today, while watching the virtual con. Mostly in fits and starts.

 

[Spirit Deer]

Greasy snow is heavy and wet and slick. It's especially bad on a hill or a turn. Drier snow is more gritty and not as slick. Greasy snow is like driving on Crisco. Not fun. Compacted snow isn't usually too much of a problem. I think we got 9" from this last storm. The forecast is for another storm at the end of next week with potential for another 8", but maybe that will change.

We managed to beclown ourselves twice in less than 24 hrs. 😳🙄🤣 First we told the guys yesterday we were out of insulation except for the big bag of scraps that was in our garage for years. So we used a bunch of that. And then today we went in to see if we needed to get another roll. But the laundry room insulation was never removed. That was our main concern. I used up a bunch more scraps and filled in all the little areas that needed it. I had just finished up when I noticed a completely new unopened fresh roll of insulation. Feel free to laugh. We did. We both thought we had another roll but couldn't find it yesterday, so assumed it had gotten used and we just hadn't noticed. We just leave stuff like that sitting out and the guys help themselves without discussing it with us, because that's what it's there for. But this time, the roll had gotten stacked under a fan in a box along with a bunch of other stuff, then covered with a drape to keep dust off everything in that pile. I was scrambling to get the house ready with no notice yesterday, moving stuff out of the way on autopilot, and I guess it didn't occur to me the insulation needed to be out where it would be obvious. It was just something that needed to be out of the way. So we used a bunch of insulation scraps, have a roll of insulation to use in the basement, and don't have to go anywhere tomorrow. We feel a little foolish, but we've made much worse mistakes so can't complain.

And it's good we went in because we're more prepared for Monday now. Mostly we have to shuffle stuff around yet again, but after Monday there should be much, much less of that. I would be surprised if they don't finish the whole house Monday. I sure hope so.

It was so nice at the house today, quiet, no stress, time to putter. It's so different when they're working, of course. As I walked around it started to sink in how much less building materials are there waiting to be installed. Only one window still uninstalled, at least half the Sheetrock done, not much lumber underfoot. It's almost like a house.

 

[dlrcpa]

Having to make repairs on the last bed topper/quilt. One of the fabrics was just too light weight and shredding at the seams. It's gone so I won't be tempted to use it again. The backing fabric is actually a single piece of a nice neutral, so if I hate the patching job I can just show the backing side instead. Finishing a adult chemo-type hat in the taupe yarn. Took a pic of baby hats while the sun was out today.

 

[ressa]

Wow, am I behind here! Grandkids had spring break. A number of appointments for my mom. Husband under the weather. Might be the cooler temps or allergies. Just no get-up-and go!
I knitted a cone's worth of white dishclothes for my friend/neighbor. Gave them to her when I went to pick up a delicious bread pudding (with sauce!) She tried telling me that I shouldn't go to so much trouble to make things for her. I just looked pointedly from the bag I gave her to the bread pudding she handed me. Several times. lol
So, been going through the cotton yarn making cloths and grocery bags. Got one section done on my scrap afghan. I've been working with some flannel I was given. Cut some for wipies and some for kitchen napkins. I just serge around the edges. Been so long since I touched my serger that I am having to relearn things. Was trying to turn sharp corners but too much of a pain. Think I will just go with rounded corners!
dcompton, my husband has been talking about getting some bees. The guy a few houses down has some. Sounds like a good idea to me. But my grandson is deathly afraid of flying insects. Not sure how that would go over. I myself HATE those huge red wasps. Just can't keep them away from the house.
We were thinking about taking a drive to Shreveport one day. I was going to look in Joannes and he wante to go to Bass Pro Shop. Yesterday we went to Washington Arkansas for that Jonquil Festival and now I just want to stay here in town. I know prices are through the roof at those things but things and prices were not clearly marked. Kids had to have a bracelet to do the big air slide things. No sign saying that or where to get them. We asked. No sign with prices. The museums had signs, no entrance without tickets. I FINALLY saw a sign saying where tickets were but we were too disgusted by then. I didn't get to look at the crafts for sale because all the huge political banners really put us off. Husband just turned around and left the area. lol
marthamfi, I second that about families being weird! Glad your mom is ok. My mom keeps having her thyroid tested too. Her kidney functions went down and they took her off some meds. That is better now. She is 91.
Crochet keeps me sane. More or less!
The only things going on next week (besides the usual) are my husband having to oversee a tree removal for daughter across the street on Monday. My mom has another appointment on Tuesday. And the 15th is his birthday!
Fingers crossed.
Forgot that DD and GD across the street got hit with diarrhea this morning. Not expecting and visitors!
More catch up later

 

[dcompton]

Dlr - the baby hats are cute.

It’s a gorgeous sunny day, but chilly. This cold system is more intense than was initially forecast for us. It’s showing down to 30 tonight, which may or may not actually happen, but tomorrow night they’re looking at 28, so that most likely actually will be a freeze. Time will tell if it adversely affects anything. The ground is warm and those temps will probably be for only a few hours during the night.

The phoenix goes on forever. I don’t know that I can finish it today, but what’s left actually has areas where there are four or five stitches of the same color together! And only five or six colors. That will definitely help. I’ll get a start on it soon.

 

[Contrary Housewife]

Meeko flipped her litter pan again this morning. I think she does it when she jumps down from the high shelf in her kennel. I've cleaned it up but still need to vacuum. DH dropped a bowl of popcorn last night, too. There's always kernels under the coffee table. I've already done a bunch of dishes. Looks like a housework day here. At least the temps are coming up. Above freezing now.

Ressa, too bad the festival was not better organized. Maybe next time they will have better planning. The bread pudding sounds delicious, hope it was as good as it looked.

Dlr, the baby hats are cute. I like the way you mixed up the colors in each one.

M, lovely hat and scarf sets! I envy you guys who can do that.

SD, good that you found that last roll of insulation while cleaning up.

Hopefully I can get things cleaned up enough here I can sit down with my latest Fire Mountain catalog and dream.

 

[ressa]

Love the hats! inspiring! (Hats far up on my to do list).
Spirit deer, I really enjoy the pictures of your snow. It gets cold here but we don't often get snow. When we get a little it pretty much shuts everything down!
Contrary housewife, that bread pudding was even better than it looked. All gone now! That friend is an excellent cook. Just her and her hubby at home and he is diabetic. I think she makes things just for the pleasure of it. When she gives them to me, I share with mom and dd2 and her family across the street and sometimes my neighbor next door. For my birthday she makes me the crispiest ginger snaps. I love crispy cookies!
That festival was a long time very well established one. Maybe my expectations were too high?
I designed web pages so very very long ago. Make navigation easy and information clear and accessible. Guess I thought that should have applied to the festival. haha
Darned blood pressure thingy demanding batteries.

 

[Spirit Deer]

One thing Minnesota does really well on the state, county, and local level is winter road maintenance. Crews get a lot of practice here, and have good equipment and lots of it. I can understand how difficult it must be in areas that don't normally get snow, especially when drivers don't have experience or think 4WD fixes everything. This was the view out our windows Friday. That's our new neighborhood, but we could barely see the houses.

We spent the morning cleaning, organizing, installing insulation, getting trash organized, doing minor demo, and generally prepping for tomorrow. I think we're ready, certainly more ready than Friday when we were rousted out of bed and in town working before we were quite awake. In a blizzard besides. Hope that never happens again.

We took the last 3 island cabinets out of the van, finally. They will have to be shuffled as needed. The place is looking more tidy than it has in weeks.

The mud guy is coming tomorrow to see if he wants our job. I hope so. The building inspector wants to see our new ½ wall before it's 'rocked. We're supposed to give them 24 hrs notice when we need inspection, but no one was in their office Friday. I hope they can come tomorrow right away.

My best work shoes are falling apart, so I dug out my Nikes I haven't worn in yrs. They were in good shape last time I wore them, but now the soles are crumbling. Trashed! I dug out my Keens and Columbias and stuck one of each on a foot. That will give me some idea if either is still comfortable for me. I plan to wear a pair of one of them tomorrow and take my old Sauconys along so in case I need to change, I can. Hope I don't have to buy new shoes. It's so hard to find a comfortable pair.