Kitchen Remodel Plus Life

Today was the last day of demolition and reconstruction has started.  I would like to point out the reason we did not get a gas range is because we do not have a gas outlet in the kitchen. Lisa, that picture is for you.  To make things a little more hectic around the house today, Eric got sent home from program.  You will also notice a 2,000 jump in my rows knit.  That is because I used today to start counting the finished knitting that I have been dumping in a laundry basket behind the couch. I only got 1/2 way through the basket. Did I mention that I still have a few UFO's too?

Electrical and More

Today work continued on the electrical work. The wall was partially opened and the plumbing was started.  Three layers of lenolium were also removed.  John and I traded off spending the day with Eric in his room, because he had the day off.  

Demolition Part 1

The first part of demolition happened today.  The water side of the kitchen was taken out, i.e. the sink and dishwasher.  The fridge was moved but with no water connection I think I will put a few bottles of water in the fridge.   If it shows up the tan was the original paint color of the house.   

Goodbye Old Kitchen

These are the last pictures of the old kitchen. Construction starts tomorrow at 9 am for the 1st phase of demolition. Yes, Rich we will save the sink and lazy Susan for you, sorry Kari, it must be a guy thing.  I only have the pots, cooking untensils and silverware left to pack. I am sure that John will move K-5 for me.  

Be Careful How You Ask For Things

Yesterday Eric had me up at 4 am, because he kicked his covers off and was cold. So I asked Eric last night before he went to sleep not to wake me up at 4 am again. He followed my instructions to a 

T.   He did not wake me up at 4 am, but instead at 3 am with the wild eyrps.  Yes, I know it was not 4 am and that being eyrpy is just a fact of life. I still wonder if I had said don't wake me up before 6 am if the results would have been different?

On the bright side, I am caught up with all the eyrpy laundry at the moment. I also got to sneak out of the house for 30 minutes to pick up a Brugers Bagle breakfast sandwich and a cuppa tea.  I also picked up a hot Starbucks treat too, so that I am in the tea this morning.  It still won't be enough to keep me awake, but it's a start. Did I mention that it started raining at 7 am? And because Eric is sick today, that I will not have to get Eric and his chair from the car to his day program while trying to keep us and the chair dry.  

So today I will knit and do finishing work. Then I will count rows in the finished basket for the one million row challenge on Raverly. Then try to get as much as possible in plastic bags and containers because the demolition on the kitchen starts Thursday morning.  So anything I don't want to be dusty will have to be in the craft room or in plastic containers. Yes, I will take you along for the  journey, sometimes with just pictures.  

Saturday in the Pecan Groves

I started out Saturday morning in the pecan groves of Green Valley at La Posada. It was the annual walk against hunger in Tucson. I managed to do 2.8 miles in 47 minutes. I am happy to say that the food bank exceeded its goal.

Then it was home for a quick shower and chores. I got most of my paperwork done. The mail and Etsy order were dropped off at the Post Office. Which happened to be on the way to Noah's 1st birthday party on Harrison road just south of Speedway. Yes I did a lot of driving yesterday.

To avoid eating too much at the party, I brought my knitting and made 4 mini washcloths for the older girls at the party. I made them promise to read to their younger siblings or parents in exchange for the washcloths. That added 120 rows to the 1 million row challenge.

I stopped at AJ's to pick up a light dinner. John made a wonderful salad with all the fixings. By 9:30 I was so tired and sore that I could hardly move. Eric had decided that I had too much fun and did too much gallivanting around so I can't do that any more. In his opinion Eric is job number one.

My New Pen

A friend of ours, Richard Skinner just made me a very lovely custom pen made out of Koa Wood from Hawaii. I was suppose to post this to Facebook, but I wanted everyone to see how pretty it is even if they are not on Facebook.  I am not sure if he is selling these yet, but if you would like a custom made pen or pencil let me know and I will see if Richard can make one for you too. so without further ado here is my new pen.  

See how nicely the wood gains match up..

Surprised

Last night and today I got into dresses for services that I have not been able to wear for years because I was too heavy. I was totally surprised. John was not surprised at all. I tried the first on a whim and it looked great last night.  Then this morning I tried on another one and it looked good too.  I guess that I am in an inches losing phase.   This means that I have more options for clothes without spending money.  Yeah!!!

On the crafting front I was able to finish the scarf that I started last night.  I also tagged and priced over a dozen skeins of hand spun yarn.  I think I could have gotten more done if my pain level had not reached the tears because it hurt so much phase.  I may have over done it a little keeping Eric entertained this afternoon. 

What does everyone think about putting my hand spun yarn on my Raverly de stash page with prices or should I just list a few more on Etsy?  I am torn because I just don't have the SEO numbers to make Etsy a place for me to sell my excess hand spun yarn. Or are their other avenues that I should be looking at? If I get 10 or more responses there will be a prize drawing for the input.  

Now it is time to go top Eric off and try to get some sleep.  

Frustrated

I am feeling so overwhelmed lately. It seems to me that Eric has been having a lot of sick days and down days with no program. Before I can even recoup from the last time, it seems that he is sick or off from program yet again. I have fallen asleep 5 days in a row on the couch before Eric. Thank goodness John is there to pick up my slack and getting Eric ready for sleep.

The holidays start tomorrow night. The house is not cleaned nor is a holiday dinner in the planning stages, although I did remember to order the challah. I did manage to do something for the holidays. To tell you the truth and I know this sounds so bad, but I would be happy cooking frozen fish and chips for dinner tomorrow. This has left me feeling angry at myself for being such a wimp. I get angry at myself for not setting the perfect holiday table and spending days cooking just the right things. This is not how to run a proper household. I am just tired and worn out.  I know that today or tomorrow I will find the energy to make my way to the market. I think I can get away with making a small roast, golden carrots and a kugel for 2. This is all the cooking I can muster myself to do.

Did I also mention that the deconstruction on the kitchen starts in 12 days and I have the 3/4's of the kitchen left to pack. Eric does not go back to program until Wednesday. Did I mention that I am not 30 anymore, I seemed to handle things so much better with little or no sleep back then. I know that this is my very tired self talking, but right now I do not see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I am hoping for a happier and healthier New Year, with more sleep. In case I don't blog tomorrow, I am going to wish everyone and Happy and Healthy New Year. La Shana Tova.

On the Road to Recovery

Eric is doing better. He is back on formula again.  To say it was a rough week is an understatement.  I hope I really get time to recharge before Eric gets sick again.  I really hate being to tired to move or knit at the end of the day.  

We picked out the kitchen counter for the remodel today.  Now all I need to do is finish packing up the kitchen and guest bathroom. Empty the pantry floor.  Get the rest of the stuff ordered. Easy peasy, I think.  

Well I have more to say, but I am just too tired to type anymore.  

Busy, Busy, Busy

Yes it has been very busy around here since my last post 4 days ago. I have gotten to watch Eric and his friends go bowling. That was such a treat. There were cheers even if only 1 or 2 pins were knocked down. Everyone had such a good time.

Eric was sick Friday, so he had 4 days off from his program. On Monday I took Eric to Build a Bear Workshop so that Champagne Bear could get some more "honey". He had lost so much weight his pants were falling down. I would like to say that the staff at the Tucson Mall Build a Bear Workshop were very gracious and told Eric exactly what they were doing for his bear. He was all smiles and they did not charge us for the "honey". I tried to get Eric to pick a shirt out for Champagne, but he did not want the U of A shirt, he wanted the Santa Clara Law School shirt, which if they make it at all is not available in Tucson. We then walked around the mall for a few hours. Eric was suppose to let me stop and have lunch, but he wanted to walk more. I got over 10,000 steps ton Monday.

I have been passing on a lot of knitting skills to other knitters. Amber learned how to purl, cast off and follow a pattern on Sunday. It is very hard to believe that she has only been knitting for a few weeks with how even her stitches are. Tuesday I got to teach the stretchy bind off to a member of the Tuesday morning group.

I got a few errands done before I had to pick up Eric. I did not realize how tired he was when we stopped at a new store for a few minutes. Eric threw up on the floor, I hope they let us back. It turns out that Eric did not have enough rest time out of his chair at program, only 30 minutes. We are going to work on that. Eric threw a lot more, even in the shower, which is a very easy clean up. He settled down by 11:30 but was up at 4 am this morning. I borrowed Teri's bed for a nap so that I did not wake up John, I hope she does not mind. Eric will be home tomorrow too. I can not get him to the hydration level that I need to before I restart the formula. His tummy still hurts and he is tired of throwing up.

On the bright side, I got 3 mini washcloths knit and finished another hat. I did not quite knit all the yarn in the house like I told John that I would do today, but I did make progress. Now off to set some hand spun yarn before dinner, John is bringing it home.

Ok, I have Really Done It !

OK this morning I have taken the plunge and really listed the Lendrum Spinning Wheel that I lovingly restored for sale. Yes, 3 spinning wheels in the house is one too many. It was a very hard choice to make, it spins wonderfully, but I like having one Double Treadle and one Single Treadle spinning wheel. Since the Louet is better at art yarn, I picked it over the Lendrum. I am still keeping the Lendrum DT. Did I mention that John and Lisa's Dad did a wonderful job or fixing the Louet.  The Louet was broken when I bought the 3rd wheel. I only have enough time to give my attention to 2 wheels. I guess it is true what they say about the 3rd wheel. You knew I would have to add that pun somewhere.

Yes, I am still having angst over selling it, but I do not want to hoard spinning wheels. They really need to be loved and used. I thought hiding the wheel out of sight for a month or so would make it easier, but it did not and I really need the space. We have the upheaval of a major remodel happening  I also think that my family would be a lot happier with me.

So I have posted it on Ravelry and Facebook. I am hoping to sell it locally. Wish me luck and let anyone you know who wants a Lendrum Spinning Wheel without the wait of a brand new one,to contact me.

Washcloths and Mini's

I am now knitting washcloths for the 2 fall fundraisers that I have on my calendar right now.  My pile of finished washcloths got wobbly so I did the finishing work on the second pile today.  Here is a quick look at the basket of things that I still need to tag. The bottom layer is composed of hand knit hats. The top layer is composed of washcloths and mini's.