A weekly list of things accomplished, enjoyed, learned, tried and remembered.
1.Just Between Friends Sale. Twice a year there is a great venue to sell all your kids outgrown clothing, toys, books, furnishings, etc. that have been taking up extra space in your home–AND you can purchase used items that are in really good condition for a great price. Just Between Friends is a nationwide franchise company. The owners organize the entire event–all you have to do is show up and shop or if you are consigning–you just sign up online, follow their instructions for condition of items and tagging, and drop it all off on the designated day. You pay a small consigner fee that will come out of your profit check–you make a percentage off of all the items you sell. If you sign up to volunteer for the event, you can make a bigger percentage. This is my 7th year participating and it’s great way for me to earn a few extra bucks off the kids items we no longer need or use. The next one will be in the fall.
2. Craft Fair. Also twice a year, Super Rockstar’s workplace hosts a craft fair. We pay a small fee for table rental and get to display and sell items that we have made. Two years ago Super Rockstar decided to start painting. He’s a super creative person in so many areas and has found this to be a great stress reliever, something he really enjoys and I think he is amazing at it. He spends most weekends working on paintings and during the craft fairs–they get snapped up pretty quickly. I, on the other hand, usually wait until the day before to even come up with an idea of what to make. I then spend the next 24 hours frantically trying my best to crank out a handful of meager offerings(usually requiring Super Rockstar’s help) to fill our table and make us a couple extra bucks. This year, I saw an idea for tic tac toe kits on Pinterest. My version isn’t quite like the original, but I think they turned out pretty cute. My son, Grayson, enjoys playing all sorts of games–and tic tac toe is one of his favorites. He was pretty excited that we had a leftover one for him to play with.
3. A Trip to Africa. Super Rockstar has worked for Compassion International for 15 years now (Congratulations Babe!). When he first started– travel all over the place was part of his job–especially a lot of international travel. But, these past 2 or 3 years he hasn’t had to very much at all (for which we are SO grateful). This week, however, he was required to go to Nairobi, Kenya to do some training for the folks in the field. He’ll be gone all next week and it already feels so strange to not have him home. After over 24 hours of travel, he finally arrived and got to go on a safari. The rest of the week, he’ll be locked in a hotel conference room, so I’m glad he got have a little enjoyment.
4. Spring Cleaning. One would think that when ones spouse is away–I would enjoy all sorts of things I normally don’t. But, I’m a pretty boring homebody by nature and being a stay at home Mom–I have a lot of time to myself anyway. Long ago when he traveled a lot, he could pretty much count on me doing some major project while he was away–coming home to a room painted a different color or a landscape project complete. But, since we are in a winter cycle that won’t end and we really don’t have any projects I can start without him–I find that I have no choice but to begin the dreaded, but ever necessary, spring cleaning. In my next life, I’m going to be uber wealthy so I can hire someone to clean our home. I loath cleaning with a passion and I especially loath spring and fall cleaning. I can think of several major tortures I would rather endure than having to spring clean. But, alas, the publishers clearing house folks have not shown up for now–so I must begin the undesirable task. Here’s a post I wrote last year that includes how I usually accomplish it all.
5. School Lunch Prep. My boys tend to be picky eaters, so I make their school lunches. I have witnessed their school’s cafeteria food and I’ll be honest–it would probably make me a picky eater too. Every Sunday I do a prep of their preferred lunch foods. It’s relatively easy because they don’t mind eating the same thing every day. Morgan likes to have carrots, apples or grapes, a cheese stick, chips and a dessert. Every once in a while he’ll want bread with butter or some chicken if I have it. Grayson likes to have chicken noodle soup, a slice of toast with jelly, carrots, a cheese stick, yogurt and a dessert. All I have to do is cut up some carrots and fruit and then separate everything into ziplock bags and store them in my refrigerator and pantry. It makes putting it all together in the mornings so much faster–just add a drink and they choose a couple of pieces of candy for dessert. They also have a favorite snack to bring with them too–pretzels for Morgan and Goldfish or Cheez its for Grayson. (Helpful Hint: With all the candy they get at Halloween, Christmas, birthdays and other holidays–we let them keep their own stash in a large bag in the pantry. Throughout the year they can choose desserts from this bag–we just monitor how much).
Enjoy your week!