The Lazy Days of Summer?

June has been a very busy month.  The first two weeks were kind of a blur of working then coming home and trying to feed my family without the use of a stove.  Then, there was the matter of installing the new stove. 

Installing a stove should be a very simple matter, but the word simple just doesn't seem to apply to our house.  Problem #1: We noticed right away that the new stove seemed to be shorter than the old one.  Evidently the standard size of drop-in stoves has changed over the years. (Am I the only one who thinks this is really stupid?)  So, we got some 2x4's and, with the help of a friend, created a frame to lift the stove to the correct height.  So far, so good.  Problem #2: When we tried to slide the stove in, we found that the opening in the counter top wasn't wide enough.  After several days of shaving and checking and shaving some more, my hubby got the opening wide enough to fit the stove. Finally!  We celebrated by baking cookies after dinner. 

Last Saturday, my son and ten of his friends (and a few adults) spent the day working on his Eagle project. It was hot and humid, but everyone worked really well together.  At the end of the day, there were four brand new picnic tables ready to be used by the students of a local elementary school.  The tables turned out so nice that I just might have to get them to build one for my backyard.

I've been keeping up with my 52 Organizing Missions, even though I haven't been keeping up with my blog. 

• #6 Detox Your Car - This one was easy. I can't stand a messy vehicle, so I keep mine neat. I removed a couple of extra camp chairs from the back and threw away some expired insurance cards that were in the glove compartment. Done.
• # 7 Be Happy - I've made my list of 10 things that make me happy, and I am working on incorporating those things into my life more often.
• #8 De-clutter 50 Items - For this mission, I focused on my junk drawer and two utility drawers in my kitchen. I was able to get rid of over a hundred things. Most went straight to the trash. Now I can open and close my drawers without worrying about them getting stuck!
• #9 Filing System Nirvana - I simplified my filing system several years ago and have been doing a pretty good job of shredding old paperwork regularly.  Just had to clean out a couple of folders to call this one done.

I just got my e-mail for Mission #10 and am really looking forward to that one.  I almost did this for #8, but figured that it would come up as a separate mission later.  I was right.  (See, it does happen sometimes.)  I'll have to wait a couple of weeks to do this one.

Next week I am going to summer camp with our Scout Troop.  It will be hot and humid, and I expect to see some of the typical problems that arise when you have 18 boys camping together for a week, and I will be spending part of my time teaching adult classes.  Somewhere in all that, I plan to have a little fun.. maybe take a hike or borrow a kayak and paddle down the river.   And that is how I will spend my summer vacation. 

Next year, I'm planning a cruise.

Fire! (or "How I Spent My Weekend")

It started out as a typical Saturday morning. I awoke to the sound of the coffee grinder.  My husband was up and he was making coffee.  Yes!  After lying in bed for a few more lazy I-don't-have-to-get-up-yet moments, I followed the lovely aroma of fresh coffee into the kitchen.

Coffee was poured, options were discussed, and we went about the business of making breakfast. I put the biscuits in the oven and started browning sausage while my husband mixed the orange juice.

Four minutes left on the biscuits and he noticed it... the strange glow on a small section of the oven's heating element. Then there were small sparks.  At first, we both thought it was a spill... perhaps a bit of grease from last night's roast chicken.  After a few minutes we realized that this was no spill.  The element itself was burning.  We removed the biscuits and turned off the oven, hoping that would solve the problem.  It didn't.

Time for more serious measures.  Hubby sprayed it with our handy kitchen fire extinguisher, which resulted in a cloud of chemical dust that quickly spread throughout the house and sent us running to open windows.  It did not, however, put out the fire. 

One final option before calling the fire department was to shut off the power at the breaker box.  That finally did the trick.  We breathed a sigh of relief (near the open window, of course) and then, after the dust settled, continued with our weekend breakfast. Amazingly enough, the food was undamaged and the biscuits were browned to perfection.

After breakfast, my husband and son disconnected the stove so we could safely turn the power back on, and moved it to the backyard. I actually smiled a little as I said good-bye to the last of our old 1980's harvest gold appliances. (Yuck!)

Anyone who has ever used a chemical fire extinguisher, know that the dust gets everywhere. It took over an hour to clean up the kitchen... and I haven't even started on the rest of the house. I am just thankful that most of the bedroom doors were closed. 

Our afternoon plans changed slightly.  We still went to the movies (because I really needed to relax), followed by appliance shopping.  Our new stove will be delivered in two weeks.  Yes, I said two weeks. Our stove is a drop-in model, which is not stocked in any store and has to be ordered. 

Things are going to be a bit different for the next two weeks, but we are not without options.  I can cook meals using the crock pot, microwave, toaster oven, electric wok, charcoal grill, and Coleman stove.  I think we're covered.  It does feel strange to walk into my kitchen and see the hole where my stove used to be, but in two weeks, we will have a brand new stove. 

Now, if I could just do something about that yellow laminate counter top...

Camping at Brazos Bend

I enjoyed camping when I was a kid, and didn't get to go often enough.  I can remember one overnighter with Camp Fire Girls where we held skills competitions.  I can light a fire and cook a pancake like nobody's business, y'all.  And I will never forget the weekend trips to Sulphur with my extended family. Sheltering from tornados in a car dealership basement with other campers - including a man who was wearing only a towel, and later watching my Nana try to burn her bra.  These are the memories of my childhood. 

Scary, isn't it?

When my son joined Cub Scouts in first grade, camping became a regular activity for our family. And, 10 years later, I still love it. 

Last weekend, we camped at Brazos Bend State Park with our Boy Scout Troop.  It was dark when we arrived, but the woods around us sparkled with thousands of fireflies and the moon lit the path to our campsite. 

Our campsite was deep in the woods, so it took a while to haul all of our gear in from the parking lot. Once we were settled, the other mom in our group suggested a quick shower to rinse off the sweat.  Have I mentioned the high humidity in this part of Texas?  The restrooms were about 1/4 mile from the parking area (great exercise opportunity) and, to our disappointment, were not equipped with showers.  It wasn't the first time I've had to settle for a sponge bath. 

It was still warm outside when we turned in for the night, but I was comfortable.  The "bath" had cooled me off and I left the rainfly off my tent to catch stray breezes.  The boys were excited, as they always are on the first night, and stayed up talking late into the night.  As their voices finally quieted, the chorus of snores began.  Sleep was a long time in coming.  One day I will learn to pitch my tent at the edge of the campsite, not in the middle.

On Saturday, the boys cooked, swung from vines, hiked, looked for alligators, learned about Texas snakes and did a simulated space mission.  It was a busy day.  After dinner, the boys put on a campfire program and performed a flag retirement ceremony.  Then we all went to the observatory to see the stars and planets through the big telescopes.  It was my first trip to the observatory and all I can say is... wow! 

The moon and the fireflies lit our way back to camp and we all went straight to bed.  If there was snoring, I fell asleep before it began.

Sunday morning in camp is bittersweet.  I find myself sad to be leaving such a beautiful place, but eager to get back home where I can enjoy a hot shower.

On Tuesday night, we'll be planning our next camping adventure. 

I can't wait!

Communication

Yesterday I received Mission #5: Become A Smart Verbal Communicator from Get Organized Wizard. The instructions were to (1) streamline my voicemail message, (2) write a script for leaving voicemails, and (3) write a script for delegating.

I've updated both my home and work voicemail messages to ask callers to tell me what they need from me and to leave contact information if they expect a reply. Rather than playing phone tag, we can actually use the voicemail system to communicate.  Wow, what a concept!

The tips for leaving voicemails for other people tells me to leave a detailed message that includes who I am, what I need, if a reply is needed or if there are deadlines, and my contact information.  I will try to follow these tips when leaving messages.  I wonder if the recipients will actually listen to the whole message or just hit delete and call me back.

I don't have anyone to delegate to, so I skipped this part.  Okay, that's not exactly true.  I sometimes ask my son to do things for me.  But, have you ever tried to give detailed instructions to a 16 year old boy?  Yeah.  Unless it's instructions for how to get to the next level of their favorite video game, you might as well forget it.

Another mission completed.  I wonder if it would be rude to forward this one to a few people who could really use it...