Sunday, April 27, 2014

I'm a little behind...

which is very different from "having a little behind"...

I have been lax of late in reporting the # and kind of items I am bringing home from school.  Let me clarify...I continue to bring 3 or more items home daily but have been a bit slow in taking photos and uploading those photos to my new laptop. And of course I excuse my neglect by pointing out, once again, that I am still learning how to use my Macbook Pro.

So, for the first time I have uploaded my photos and will post them in today's post! Yay!

If I were bi-polar, which I don't think I am, I could say that that explains the rather huge swings in my emotions of late, but since I don't have that claim I blame my mood swings on life in general - in one moment I feel higher than the loftiest of kites only to come crashing down into a tree like Charlie Brown's ill-fated kite.  One moment I feel on top of the world when the reality of my impending retirement hits home, only then to sink into the abyss when I realize the many challenges of my retirement journey.  That, in itself, is a complete series of posts!

For today I will stick with the decluttering of my work environment, the great things I nabbed at the recent silent auction held at my school and the results of my recent and continuing work around the house.

So...here goes...
A box my brother gave to me years ago... and some videotapes I just can't get rid of yet...
 videotapes of Kazi's favourite shows when she was about 4 or 5 years old... call me sentimental!
Inside that box...labels and sticky notes galore...will I still use sticky notes when I'm not a teacher any longer? My gut says yes!!
From the silent auction - a gorgeous book bag along with three books I haven't read yet...I am preparing my summer reading program...I think I paid about $13.00 in total - each of the books is labelled for a much higher price :)
Some CDs that I brought home this past week and there are still lots more at school. No wonder poor Kazi would get upset with me eh?  So many things around the house ended up in my classroom for some reason or other...though I promise you I never took anything that she was currently using...
 My Christmas CDs - won't be needing them at school any longer...
My thermometer...I think this will be very handy to have at Crofters Lane in PEI...
 We have more spices than the average household since I took this set to school...then I would have to buy duplicates to use at home!!
I won this gorgeous plate at the silent auction - I paid $12.00. Perhaps a bit pricey but it was instant attraction so I had to have it...
This lovely flower has a tea light in it - I am changing the powder room counter to a black/grey granite look (more about that later) so this candle holder will look fabulous! ($6.00)
Last but not least I purchased this tea mug for Kazi as I thought it suited her personality and she loves her tea! ($8.00)

I think I am still way ahead of my April challenge of bringing at least 3 items home per day.  I will be continuing this challenge for May and June as well as getting rid of obsolete materials so the classroom and my office will be ready for the incoming teacher. All teachers tend to hoard materials as we "never know when we might need something"!

OK, on to the renos & redecorating...
Last weekend my friend Julie spent a couple of days with me...she painted this shelf in the kitchen to match the wall colour so it looks like it's part of the wall...I love how bright the fruit looks now...
I tackled wallpapering the foyer and then putting up the mirror and the shelf underneath. I used to always have a table under the mirror piled with crap and making the foyer appear narrower than it is.
 The smaller wall shelf opens up the space while still leaving a spot for mail or keys. The wallpaper is just a textured beige colour and helps to cover up the hallways many bumps and bruises. This area is finished except for a piece of trim where the walls meet the ceiling.  I can handle that myself.
 The dining room is finished. I love the soft colour. The plate on the table I got at Winner's on sale for $7.00 and it matches the picture on the wall perfectly - a pop of colour from a spray of poppies.

 This little shelf was painted a burgundy colour so I repainted it white - it's near the front door and holds our keys.
This you may have already seen - I'm very proud of this room. The new curtains are a great match to the gorgeous area rug. The walls were a mess and it took me two days to repaint them. I had to add a coat of primer because the upper half of the walls were painted green while the lower half had wallpaper which I removed a few months ago. There had been many pictures on the walls along with a large mirror. Once all removed there were a couple of dozen holes to spackle, sand and then paint. Now you can't tell where any of the holes were - it looks amazing. The colour is called Swan White and is a nice soft and creamy colour.
 The kitchen is finished...for now.  When I come back in the fall I am replacing the double sink, faucet and probably the countertop. What has been done? New ceramic tile floor and white subway tiles for the backsplash, new handles on all the cupboards and drawers, two coats of Extreme White on walls and ceiling, new light cover, a good cleaning and new shelf paper and the shelf painted to match the walls. Oh, and you can see I'm still making green drinks! Marjorie - I did explore the Omega juicers but went with a new Breville for now. However when the condo is sold I'm giving the Breville to Kazi and buying myself the Omega as it can also be used to make nut butters & milk, hummus and sorbet!!
 I am very happy with my dining room too. The table had been holding all of my reno and paint supplies the last couple of months but now I've moved all that to the basement where I will continue my redecorating efforts. Kazi, her boyfriend Steve, and myself had Easter dinner in our new dining room and it was FAB to have a nice place to eat once again. Kazi has influenced Steve's eating habits (formerly a strictly meat and potatoes kind of guy) and now he is enjoying her juicing efforts as well as eating tons of salad and other vegetables. A convert!!
It's a calm and beautiful room. Walls spackled and painted a soft colour called "Meeting Room" which sounded appropriate. New hardwood floors and baseboard, new area rug, new curtain & rod.
Here's a final shot of the foyer (look, there's Dougie the Dodge!!) and I'm happy how it's come together. New vinyl floor, new wallpaper, more spacious with the exchange of a shelf instead of a table which stuck out into the space.

I'll be doing whatever else I can fit into the last two months before I head to PEI for the summer and fall. When I return I can devote my whole days to finishing the basement and upstairs bedrooms and bathroom.  It will be wonderful to have nothing but FREE TIME to get things done. Then it'll be up for sale in early 2015.

My FIVE YEAR PLAN is coming together. Sometimes (most of the time) it doesn't feel real. Occasionally I feel a jolt of PURE JOY but mostly it still feels like a dream.

If you made it to the bottom of this lengthy photo-filled post you are a true friend :) I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday. The sun is shining here in London, Ontario although still cold. I have the recycling to get ready, two narrow strips of wallpaper to add to the foyer near the front door (then that's done!), leek soup to make, green drinks to make and I'm due to give myself a haircut later (I trim it myself every two weeks!)

Toodles!

11 comments:

  1. livingrichonthecheapApril 27, 2014 at 12:46 PM

    Great finds at the silent auction. I love how your home is turning out. My favorite idea is the small shelf under the mirror though - great small space idea! Painting the shelf in the kitchen to match the wall was another great idea. When you go to Crofters Lane you will be in all decoration mode :)

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  2. Love the changes to your home. you will love the Omega juicer.

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  3. Yay, I'm a true friend!
    I like your behind.
    And you are making tremendous strides towards all of your goals!!! Amazing!

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  4. I love the plate and I too, read the entire post! Love the colors and the poppies!

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  5. Well I like your behind whether it's little or the other way like mine. ;-)
    You have done a great job and kudos to you for almost being at the end of a very long ordeal(as are ALL home renos).
    A voice in my head whispered to me while I was reading this and said, "You know, she's going to make her condo so nice, she isn't going to want to sell it in the end." Darn that little whispering voice!
    If I ever get my passport(darn that 911 thing!)I want to come see you in PEI and maybe treat us to a dinner of lobstah and Digby scallops.

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  6. witchisland.blogspot.caApril 27, 2014 at 4:23 PM

    Of course a true friend would always read your blog till the end!!!
    I'm actually really impressed with all that you have done in the past couple of month's to your condo. It looks absolutely beautiful. I know you must feel proud of all your hard work.
    I think it is the weather thing that has your moods swinging plus the fact that the day is coming closer to your finally chapter at work in your school. Not that you will never work again it's just the comfort of what you have known will be gone with your retirement and there is always the unknown waiting which can make us nervous. After a couple of weeks you will so be over that feeling.
    I really admire you and your strong personality which is why you will never fail at anything you try or do.
    Plus we all have your back.
    Take care and have a fantastic week..

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  7. Marvellous when plans come together - esp. 5 year plans! Your house is gorgeous, just my cup of tea and that flower tealight is just so pretty! I had to do the same thing when I left teaching - I came home with all kinds of rubbish accumulated over the years!

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  8. I'm sure you're house will sell very quickly.It's' move in' ready,and looks great!
    Jane x

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  9. Laura / No More SpendingApril 28, 2014 at 12:40 AM

    You're making great progress Jane! House looks great :)

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  10. Your home renovations are turning out beautifully! :)


    You said your daughter was converting her boyfriend's eating habits. Any tips to share?? Really need to work on mine and hubby's eating habits.

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  11. It looks great! Sorry for some rieason this laptop from hell is not always letting me comment. Funny I just got rid of the table under my great grandmoms mirror in our foryer also. It was just a junk collector. Now it is junk acollector at my sisters house :) I put a didn't put a shelf under though...

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