Getting Back to Normal!

Before...

and now...

There, my eyes are getting closer together again! And I have ears!! My face is getting back to normal again and it feels great! That small red spot at the top of my forehead was the source of my swelliness and it is nicely healed. I still have a few more days of taking antibiotics and then we'll call it one more of life's odd little experiences over and done with. My laugh lines are back though, but I don't mind that - I'd rather have visible laugh lines than have my eyes move around to the sides of my head!!

While stuck in the house I got lots done - I didn't lie around feeling sorry for myself. No way!! I got really busy while I was feeling sorry for myself!!

The laundry room has been cleaned out! As part of my redecorating efforts it will get a paint job in the new year (yes, no more PINK) and perhaps some new shelves. And a little further down the road I'll be getting a new washer and dryer :)

 My workroom (aka the furnace room) is actually usable again!! I've been putting my work table to use with hammers, screwdrivers, wire etc while putting art and shelves back up on the walls of the TV room and dining room. I'll take some photos to share.

 The storage space "under the stairs" has had a major cleanout.  The really exciting thing is I actually have empty space!! How cool is that!?! There is room for the Christmas bins and there is room under the spring/fall coats for a couple more bins :) The bedding you see is for the futon in the TV room for when we have overnight guests.

This is the storage area off the laundry room - totally reorganized. The stuff furthest away is for a yard sale next June so after that there will be even MORE available space!

But even now I have a couple of empty shelves :)

I am having fun making wall displays - this one is for my dad - his guitar (I have happy memories of sitting at his feet while he played and sang), his tambourine and a picture of the "old sap" drinking from a sap bucket!! He was very proud of the fact that this photo was chosen to be in a Co-op calendar :)

Just one of many boxes that I donated to the local thrift store - making space!!

Some of the empty bins that had been storing decor items and art work over the past year. Hopefully they will fit into the storage space "under the stairs".

There's lots of room for storing the Christmas bins - I have a total of 4 bins of Christmas stuff, about half of what I used to have. "Downsizing and decluttering" are the order of the day!

I need to get busy using this stuff! I had two bins of old gift bags, gift tags, Christmas cards, ribbons and bows and wrapping paper. This is what is left after my D & D efforts (downsizing and decluttering!)

My gorgeous dining room now with a few Christmas decorations and my carpet which I continue to drool over. It's small but I love it!

Just a reminder to myself to face each day with courage...

Yesterday I bought a few things to go into the kittens' stockings - yes, they have totally stolen my heart!!

This Thursday will see the completion of the basement reno with the delivery of my new electric fireplace/TV unit and 2 new chairs!! The set of ottomans arrived yesterday. Oh, and I'm still waiting for my new futon cover and pillows to arrive. They're coming from the States and not sure how long I'll have to wait. Then I'll have to post some MORE PHOTOS!!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas.....

Progress Report

First to answer your questions from my last post:

No I wasn't crossing my eyes on purpose Michelle LOL! For some reason one side of my face was puffier than the other! I have some Oil of Oregano but have difficulties getting it down!

Will I give up cutting my hair so short - NOT ON YOUR LIFE!! But I will leave that area alone for a little bit.  And yes the juicer is back on the counter! I don't eat poorly but I could eat better. I am drinking a nice concoction of apples, spinach, cucumber, yellow pepper, carrots, celery and ginger as we speak......errrrr.......so to speak:)

The swelling has decreased to the point where I have hopes of entering the world once again - tomorrow!!

And the big question of course: "With the upcoming holiday season that also marks an anniversary of a not-so-stellar moment in your life, I'm wondering if you have a "game plan" to navigate the next few weeks to keep away the negative feelings and emotions?"

Keeping busy is key as you said Freckles. Hence the whirl of productive activity I now find myself engaged in. And we all benefit - the house is looking better, areas that haven't been touched for awhile are getting a massive re-organization and cleaning and I'm too busy to think. Yesterday I cleaned out the kitchen cupboards to make room for new dishes that I ordered. 

I seem to have a thing for poppies lately:)  I filled 3 boxes for Talize, the local thrift shop - the two of us do not need 30+ wineglasses or 30+ mugs!! The more organized I get the better I feel. I'm getting control back over my environment.  And I like that. 

Getting together with good friends and family helps too. A friend and I went on a Christmas Spirit walk recently - we walked through a candle lit forest, stopped from time to time with our group to sing carols together around campfires and ate way more than our share of hot chocolate and cookies! I felt happy to be sharing a festive couple of hours in the great outdoors with a group of like minded people and it helped raise my spirits.

When we arrived we were greeted by carollers.

There was a large tree covered in lights and candles everywhere. 

 

Throughout the walk there were several campfires to keep us warm.

Hard to see but the pathways were marked by pairs of lanterns.

Lanterns made from 2L pop bottles and candles!

Staying toasty warm!

Not very fancy but beautifully effective. 

Lined up and waiting to go inside a century old schoolhouse for
a mini-concert (and to warm up!). Then it was time to stand outside
around a roaring fire with hot chocolate and cookies while
singing more carols with a choir of teenagers. Oh,
and we had our picture taken with Santa!! 

The evening had a really good feel to it. I was counting my blessings :)

Another thing I've done is give myself some things to look forward to - like the flooring, new furniture for the TV room coming this Thursday, new dishes, new dining room carpet - I just love getting packages delivered to my door!!

And Kazi (who is boyfriend-less now too) and I decided that we would hold a Christmas Eve party for us and our single friends. Instead of moping about feeling sad I suggested gathering together in our NEW TV ROOM and watching National Lampoon's "Christmas Vacation" and our annual favourite "The Christmas Story" so planning that will keep both of us busy in a positive way.

Finally, who can be sad around these 2 lovey dovey girls??

Beautiful Lily - wherever I sit she is sure to follow. 

Mischievous Luna of the very big eyes!! "Life is a picnic"!!

Cuddling together - <3
They make my heart happy!!

 Well, that turned into a whole post! More to come on the renos!

The Good, the Bad and the Very Very Ugly!

The Good:

It's been an up and down kind of week. Very busy with the flooring installers finishing up their previous job early so arrived to do my basement ahead of schedule. That's GOOD!
A "basement reno" post will be on its way soon!

I'm way behind in posts but I'll catch up. Now that I'm stuck inside for a few days. That'll be explained in the "Ugly" section of this post.

Back to the GOOD....if cuteness was goodness Lily would be Mother Teresa!

Praying for yummy treats for Christmas!

 Grooming for the holidays...Luna is making sure Lily lays still for her lickin'!! Lily's being GOOD!

Hold still while I'm licking you!

This was such a momentous occasion I had to take a photo!! Five years since I last saw this price!! That's not good...it's GREAT!!

First time gas has been below $1.00/L in 5 years!!

 

Well, Luna's intentions were GOOD I'm sure! It was nice to have her company while I cleaned out and re-organized the furnace room. Now it's looking GOOD!

My not-so-helpful helper during furnace room cleanup!

 The Bad:
The bad is only temporary thank goodness! And this is only a small part of it. Now that the reno is done I have several basement storage areas jam packed full of a) junk b) yard sale stuff and c) stuff I'm keeping. So let the sorting, tossing and rearranging begin! The furnace room is done.

Next up is the laundry room, the storage area under the stairs and the storage area off the laundry room. I've lugged a couple bags to the dumpster with much more to come. The other part of this job is putting my large collection of paintings etc back up on the walls. When I thought I was moving to PEI I took everything down and stored it in bins. Now I get to put it all back up again on freshly painted walls (mostly). Progress is being made.

Too much stuff!

The Ugly:
On Wednesday I felt my forehead getting tight but sort of ignored it. I've had a tiny bump in my widow's peak for weeks, it didn't seem to change, couldn't be seen and didn't bother me. Thursday morning I woke up with a Klingon forehead and a lot of facial pain. There was swelling on my forehead, around my eyes, bridge of my nose and cheeks. What the hell?

So off to the doctor I went. Their diagnosis - folliculitis.  Massive antibiotics required. Who knew that one miniscule infected hair follicle could cause one's entire face to blow up? I look like I have two black eyes and my glasses keep sliding down because there is just one mass of puffiness between my eyes. The photo doesn't do it justice. I am not a happy camper as I refuse to go out looking like this and Christmas is less than 2 weeks away!! Bah humbug I say!!