My Midlife Meanderings

 I am starting to work on cleaning the house with the intent of paring down our "stuff" and potentially moving in a few years.  I suppose boot camp cleaning works, and I could spend summer days doing it.  However, and hour a week on the weekend will also work.  I am motivated by visible progress.  It could be a check list, a progress bar, or a physical change.  I had yet to put Christmas items away--I just boxed up and stacked downstairs.  So I took before and after pictures of my mini success. Before--this is the view going down into my basement.  It was my daughter's "room" when she moved back in for five years.  But the 25% as you come down the stairs was not part of her room.  We had just cleared the basement to this side. I neatly stacked up the bins in the storage closet.  I filled a garbage and a recycle bag.  A total basement vacuum (as well as sprayed the baseboards to prevent bugs).  My granddaughter helped by ru...

 The stress associated with Christmas cards is one I have sworn off but revisit each year.  If I had a dollar for every box of cards I have purchased but have not sent . . . My intentions are good, but I rarely have the energy to send out.  I do have my students sign a bunch of cards, and we distribute them to school and church personnel.  Personally, I fail.  Now that we are empty nesters, I don't have much to say. One last thing on this topic--I don't wonder why I did or did not get a card from anyone, so you do not have to post your reason online.