2011 August — Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara

A Few Updates

August 31, 2011 · by JudyL

I’m bad about leaving you hanging on things I mention and then never get back to mentioning again. If you’re wondering about something, go ahead and ask any time. Here are a few items that I’ve been asked lately.

Chad and Nicole – They seem fine. I haven’t spoken with them in a few days but get texts every now and then. I still miss them terribly and feel so bad about how little time I spent with my grandparents and with my parents now. Maybe they don’t miss me so much but if they do . . I’ve been a bad daughter for not getting home more often. Funny how you don’t realize how things are til you’re in that same position.

The Dentist – Yes, I did get what I thought was all my dental work done before leaving Nevada. There was a tooth between two crowns that apparently had a cavity underneath a large filling. The dentist here is fantastic! A lady and use uses happy gas! I think I’ll go back for a while every day . . at least til we find a house. I may end up having to have a root canal on the tooth she filled yesterday but we’re taking the conservative route for now and hoping for the best.

The House – There’s still hope. The developers are willing to work with us on the restrictions and it’s all covenants that say “approval from the committee” so I think it’s all something we can work out. We’re not being unreasonable, they’re not being unreasonable and so far, I’m being optimistic. There may even be some lots around us that we can buy but things definitely move way more slowly here than anywhere we’ve ever been. When we bought in MO, we had half a dozen issues and the realtor had them resolved within a day, even though some of them involved approval from city hall and it was a weekend. Things don’t happen like that here. We’re close on the price and I think that’s not going to be an issue but I’ve learned we don’t have a deal til we have a deal and even then, sometimes we don’t have a deal.

A friend is coming over to sew with me this afternoon. I’m hoping Speck behaves and doesn’t have to spend the afternoon in the crate, though he doesn’t come downstairs with me anyway.

I had roast in the crockpot yesterday and Vince and I went to look at a house after my marathon dental appointment and ended up eating in town so I have dinner covered for tonight.

Now you know everything I know!

· Filed Under: Worthless Chatter · 17 Comments

September Monochromatic Challenge

August 31, 2011 · by JudyL

The remaining color to be drawn is . .

GREEN

So many shades of green to choose from. This will be a fun one for me. One box of fabric got shoved under a table during the move and they couldn’t get it out without opening it and taking the contents out and the contents were . . green fabric!

If you made a pink piece for August, we would love to see it! There’s probably no need to mention that I didn’t get a pink piece made but I will get a green something made!

· Filed Under: Quilting · 9 Comments

Time Wasting

August 30, 2011 · by JudyL

You know I’m an expert at wasting time but recently as part of a “Life Well Lived” series for Blogher, we were asked the following question:

What is the biggest time waster/issue you have when getting you and your family ready in the morning? What tips do you have to save time in the morning to get everyone out and ready on time?

My answer was this: When Chad was young, in late elementary or middle school, getting him up in the morning was a nightmare. I dreaded getting up because I knew the next thing I had to do was get Chad up. I’d go upstairs, wake him up, come back downstairs to fix breakfast, go back and wake him up again and make him promise he was actually getting into the shower the minute I left the room, go back downstairs, turn the bacon, go back upstairs to find that he had gone back to bed. You’ve probably been there.

Someone told me to get him his own alarm clock, have him set it and check it each night and get up on his own each morning. We did and we discussed with him what time he had to get up in order to shower and get dressed and be downstairs for breakfast by 7 a.m. There was probably some reward for doing it but the punishment for not doing it was that his bed time got moved up 30 minutes for each morning he didn’t get up, get dressed and get downstairs to eat breakfast on time. We explained to him that the only reason he should have for not getting up was that he needed more sleep so he would go to bed earlier and earlier til he got up on time. I remember us arguing at one point and I told him that if he had to get off the bus and go to bed, that was fine with me because he WAS going to get up on time. He hated going to bed early so having to go to bed 30 minutes early a few times worked for him.

It worked and it made my mornings so much easier.

Do you have any tips to share that help get your family (or just yourself) going in the morning? Take a moment and go over to the BlogHer Life Well Lived Series and see what others are saying on this topic. And, while you’re there, be sure to answer their question by leaving a comment about a Life Well Lived Moment and you will be entered to win a $250 Visa Card.

· Filed Under: Home & Garden · 9 Comments

Noises in the Night

August 30, 2011 · by JudyL

I am the biggest chicken in the whole world! When it gets dark, I’m afraid of my own shadow. Nothing’s ever happened that made me afraid . . I’m just scared! When I was growing up, we lived in a very safe little town (except for my sister and her crazy friends!). We would leave the keys in our cars during the day time and they had a house key on them. I never went to bed early and about midnight, I would remember that my keys were in the car. Of course, the car was about 2 steps from the door but I’d wake my dad up, make him come “watch me” while I went out and got my keys! Even now, I make Vince get up and “watch me” if Speck has to go out in the middle of the night. I know . . he should just go out with him and let me sleep but that doesn’t happen.

Outside this house are some round vent opening type things on the sides. I know critters can get through there!

The side by the kitchen has a screen over the opening. The side by the bedrooms does not!

In the master bedroom closest, there’s an attic access. Every night just about the time I almost fall asleep, I hear this loud thump! The first couple of nights, it scared me half to death. The next few nights, I lay in bed waiting for it and yes, it always happens, just like clockwork, right before I go to sleep. Of course, Vince is snoring to beat the band and he hears nothing.

The other night on the news, they were talking about a rabid raccoon. Last night when I heard the thump . . you know what went through my mind! A rabid raccoon has climbed up the side of my house, gone through the opening, into my attic and has fallen into my closet. I said to Vince “There could be a raccoon in the closet!” Huh? “Really, would you get up and look?” No! He would not get up and look. This morning I never thought about it and he uses a different closet.

Thank goodness, I had clothes in the laundry room this morning or I’m not sure what I would have worn to the dentist because I am not opening that closet til he gets home.

What if there is a rabid raccoon and he falls down into my closet every night and then climbs back up in the morning and does it again every night? Otherwise, what is that sound I’m hearing every night?