Keeping busy

Goodness, another busy week is nearly in the books.  How the heck did I get anything done before I retired?  From the state of the house I would tell you I didn't.  At least not more than cursory clean and dusting.

This week, however, was more about spending time with others, rather than house cleaning.  Wednesday I met a couple of former co-workers for coffee/tea at a nearby coffee shop.  The one individual is still working, so a good deal of our conversation revolved around work and people we worked with through the years, as well as catching up on our personal lives.

Before heading to the cafe, I'd spent a good 90 minutes doing a quick clear of the garage, sorting items for donation, removal, and retention.  I also gathered up items my daughter had left behind in the move last fall.  Between these, an outdoor water table, and some items from the latest house purge I had set aside for her, the trunk and backseat of my car were packed full!  The removal pile isn't as large as I thought it might be but I know there are still things in the house to go out there so I'll wait before I touch base with a removal company.  The donation box was brought into the house and added to that pile.  

I have several cans of paint, some from the previous owner, to get rid of too.  I checked on our city website and the next hazardous waste drop-off is on April 26.  I'll put a reminder in my calendar to load the car with these items the day prior so I can get there when they open.  They do several events each spring, you load your car, drive onto the lot, open the trunk and the city workers unload.  No getting out one's vehicle at all!  I think it's a great idea and diverts these items from the landfill.

After my visit with C and R, it was off to Melville to visit D and Eli.  I spent the night there and drove back on Thursday.  We celebrated Easter a little early, with Eli searching for a dozen plastic Easter eggs his mother had hidden in the living room.  Each egg contained two small chocolate eggs....once he found one he was off in a hurry to find more.  When I left Thursday afternoon there were still three in hiding.  

Here he's putting the basket I made on his head.  What a silly goose!  We had a lot of fun, he and I, we read books, watched Paw Patrol cartoons, danced, ran around in the yard where he slid down his slide, hit the T ball with his bat, and enjoyed the sunshine.  It was chilly, just a few degrees above freezing, but he didn't mind being outdoors at all. 

Eli also enjoyed climbing on me for cuddles and/or tickles.  He makes me laugh with his giggles.  He likes to play with the cat Stanley with a toy tied to a string. Stanley chases him and Eli laughs and laughs.  The floor plan is fairly open, so he can run between the living room, kitchen and front hall easily.  Just watching him play is so joyful.

His vocabulary continues to increase including a couple of sentences, "where is it?" and "here it is".  I suspect his mother says this to him frequently.  He knows and can vocalize the sounds a lion, wolf, cat, dog, bird, cow, horse, and dinosaur says.  Do we really know the sound a dinosaur would have made?  Eli can pick out items in the books we read.  He asks for ap-ple, 'nana, cheese (but only smoked cheddar or Gouda), cook-ahs (cookies), and sometimes even says please.  He'll let you know when he's "all done", wants up or down, and has an attitude when he doesn't get what he wants.   He's beginning to recognize when he's tired and will ask for his bi-bi (blanket) and bub-ba (bottle) and take himself off to bed.  All in all, he's a two year old. He drives his mother batty at times, but he's a loving, sweet child most of the time.  It was a wonderful visit and we're planning the next for the end of May.

It may need to be postponed but that will depend how the house selling process is going.  I'm aiming to have it listed by the beginning of May, though will ask the agent to do a walk through perhaps as early as next week.  I'd like to get a sense of how much more I need to do before the listing is put up.  There are a few items on my own to-do list but I'm close to being ready.  

On Friday, I crossed a couple of these off the list. First though, I met K and J and our travel agent L at a lovely little cafe for a visit. We've been trying to get together since January and it just hasn't come together until now!  We talked about various travels both past and upcoming (for K and J, not me...yet).  L is just a lovely person, she puts a lot of work into assisting her clients, and worries when things don't work quite as expected.  For example, when I got back from this last cruise, I let her know the cabin had drop down bunks, just for future reference.  She was so apologetic, and I kept telling her it wasn't a big deal and I'd liked the location very much.  I know, if I book another cruise with her, she'll check and double check the style of the room. 

In the parking lot I transferred three boxes of books to K and J's car as they will be volunteering at a book sale this summer.  They can pick through the books and read what they like before hand if they choose.  I did mention one of the boxes was just cookbooks and another was mostly business and self-help books.  So happy to be rid of these items.  I have one small shelf left of favorites that I'll pack away.  Next up, I headed to SarCan to drop of old electronics, all computer equipment.  K mentioned she has a friend who will take old televisions, so I'll get the phone number as I have two of these sitting around as well.  They are the old tube televisions, so very heavy.  But K says this person will pick up as well, so I won't have to try to get them into the car.  

The de-cluttering continues.  I packed away the extra bedding from the spare room and tucked the bags into the closet.  The only thing left to do in that room is to replace the light fixture.  I've read up on it, and watched a couple of videos but I think I'll wait until my brother comes for visit before I tackle.  He can help with it or watch me electrocute myself and call for help. :)  In my bedroom, I've finished clearing the closet of non-essentials and have hung new curtains.  The craft room still has a few items I may decide to get rid of, but for the past part it is done.  I did a little more clearing of the counters in the kitchen, took all the magnets (except one...it looked so bare) off the refrigerator.  I pulled everything off the pantry shelves, cleaned the shelves and replaced the contents.  I still have to finish the lazy susans and give the refrigerator and freezer a quick scrub.  The latter are not horrid but when I'm in the mood I need to take advantage.

Next up is to tackle my desk.  I went through it in early February, but I've come to realize that I rarely go into it and retrieve any items. So why am I keeping all of it?  I have no idea...so that's one of this weekend's projects.  Back to my original comment, I'm finding there is always something that needs to be done and the more I clean and repair and de-clutter the more I realize this house is just too big.  I don't want to spend days of my retirement being a maid to this house.  So it is definitely time to let it go.

I was asked where I'll move to once the house has been sold.  To a certain extent, that decision is still up in the air.  C and I recently had a conversation; I asked him how he felt about living with his mother.  It turns out, he's okay with that.  He was planning on buying a condo this year and will do so, but now I'll pay half the down payment and we'll find a two bedroom.  Since I'll need the proceeds from the sale of the house, the search will have to wait a bit.  

In any event, this way I'll have a home base which will allow me to be flexible in my future plans.  We've agreed I'll pay half the costs while I'm here in Saskatchewan and he'll manage on his own when I'm not.  I still would like to be on Vancouver Island for the winter months, though I may try to rent for the first year or two, and put the rest of the proceeds from the house in an investment account for a bit.  Or maybe I'll head further south to the States, to Arizona perhaps.  That is less likely simply because of the additional costs due to the exchange rate.  But it is worth exploring. To be honest I've even considered, very briefly, buying a Class C motorhome to spend the winters away from the cold.  I say briefly, because I'm not certain I'd be prepared to deal with the emptying of tanks or any mechanical issues that might come up.  At this point, it's all a bit hazy and predicated on the house selling.  The market is slow here, in my neighbourhood it seems to be taking nearly 6 months for most to sell, usually with a price reduction. I plan to list the house slightly below market value as I think the odds of selling quickly will be better.  

In the meantime I'll keep busy cleaning, de-cluttering and crafting.  Have a great weekend everyone!