November 23, 2009

• By popular request.....Or at least responding to the three people have said they want more blogging ......I am here!

  It's been a heckuva couple of months around here.  I guess when you see a huge lapse in my blogging you can assume that there's a heckuva something going on!

  I think dh's flu two weeks ago was the last straw for me.  I got sick too with a sinus cold and felt pretty crummy for a few days. You know those sinus colds when you can still breathe through your nose, but you have so much sinus pressure your teeth hurt?  It was pretty bad.  Plus I had this strange cough, mostly at night, but quite pesky.  Mind you, I wasn't anywhere as sick as dh......and I am thankful for that, but it was a hard week here that week.

  However, I learned something.  I can not balance all the plates I have spinning right now.  Or at least, I need to take some time to myself to recharge if I am to keep the plates spinning.  This has led to two changes.  The first is that starting last week, I am hyper-diligent about leaving work on time.  I am making sure to be home after school for Nature Boy and  because I need the time too.

  And the second change is my Big Project.

  K....So we have this huge bedroom.  It is double the size we need for a bedroom, but it is just the way it was carved out of this old farmhouse that makes it so big.  In the past we have used half for our bedroom and half for my sewing area....Or more realistically, a catchall area for laundry, books, yarn, etc.  That half of the bedroom never seems to stay tidy.

  I have had this idea for years to turn half the room into an adult sitting room...i.e. a parental retreat.  And since we have one main living space downstairs (just the living room, no family room or den) sometimes I just want an escape from the Wii, the TV, etc.  So......I decided to do it.

  Now, my sequence of doing things may seem a bit odd....But I knew that I wanted a seating area, plants, a focal point, and a TV (well...yeah....then I can watch my shows  ).  Last week, I started by doing some tidying and picking up and discussing with dh the lay out I had in mind.  Then one night, we flipped our Bedroom side of the room and the Seating Area side.  This makes more sense terms of the door, the lighting and even road noise. 

  Then, I got my focal point.  I wanted to be able to sit and relax and knit and listen to music and......watch birds.  I have always enjoyed birds and have in the past had parakeets.  At work, there are some Zebra Finches and I just love them.  They are sweet and cute and busy!  So, I plotted and schemed and ran the idea by dh and now.....

  We have birds.

  

  Loverly little finches.

  

  

  

  I wanted to get a very big cage, and we did get a large one to start, but then dh and Nature Boy really thought we should get a bigger cage....and I certainly didn't mind.  We ended up getting a second of the same cage and then doing a bit of disassembly and reassembly magic, we now have very large, very nice cage!

  

  And it cost almost half the price as if we had gotten a cage that was just plain this big to start.  Clever and thrifty.  I love it!

  And the birds love it too.

  Now, I am still working on other aspects of the Seating Area.  For one, you can see the shelves under the cage and beside the cage are pretty cluttered.  I haven't finished moving stuff around and doing a shelf purge (well, I haven't even started the shelf purge) but it's okay, I am getting there bit by bit.

  I also don't have proper seating set up yet.  We were keeping an eye out on Craig's list for a love seat, but then my mom offered us a futon couch she has and doesn't have room for anymore. So, we are happily going to take that for the seating.  For now, I have a rocking chair up there and can sit and enjoy the birds.  I am happy though, I am already enjoying my adult oasis.

  I have lots more to do to make is just how I want it, but I am enjoying the process as much as I will enjoy the oasis.  And I figure this counts a lot as a way to be taking care of myself and it is nice to be doing it!

   

  • 1:00 pm
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