Halfway down the second five-gallon bucket of paint.
As with most big projects, I didn’t realize quite how big this project was going to be until I was too far into it to get out. I started painting in early June, and should finish by the end of July. Yesterday, having gotten the big freezers pulled out, I painted the wall behind the freezers and got them put back. There is only one area left to paint, besides Weston’s room (which I don’t plan to paint till fall, after he goes to WVU), and I will have painted the entire downstairs. (I’m waiting to paint that other area until some tools, workshop bench, etc, have been moved to our new outdoor storage building. Which hasn’t been built yet, but will be. Soon. I hope. CROSSING FINGERS.) My enthusiasm for painting is waning by the day. I like to paint, don’t get me wrong, but I’m about painted out–yet at the same time pretty excited about the result.
While Weston and Morgan have been in Texas this summer, I have transformed the downstairs into something they will barely recognize. Summer is both when I have the most time–and am the busiest. I have the most time because my days aren’t broken up by driving around for school and sports, and I’m the busiest because I somehow manage to fill up that extra time with extra projects.
If the downstairs project was finished, I would fill up my time with something else. I’m not very good at doing nothing. (I experimented with doing nothing last summer and haven’t tried it since.) How can you do nothing when there are so many things to do? If nothing needs done right now, I can even do things ahead of time that don’t need done yet! Like, get food ready for the kids! Who aren’t here! (They’ll be back in about two weeks.) Yesterday I made chocolate chip cookie dough, rolled it up in logs, and froze it for Morgan to slice and bake. She likes to bake cookies, but she doesn’t like to make the dough. And I’m such an enabler.
Then I asked her what else she wanted me to put in the downstairs kitchen for her. Since she’s on to me and knows everything I’ve been doing down there, she’s already making plans for her friends to come over as soon as she gets home and have a sleep-over party.
Morgan: “Food. Food I like. I’ve lived with you for 15 years. You know what I like.”
Me: “Okay, here’s my list for you: Onions, okra, green beans, liver, very mild peppers, and rhubarb. Do I have this right?”
Morgan: “Yeah… No. Put cake making stuff in it. The box kind. The other kind is just difficult.”
BOX CAKE?! I ask her to tell me anything she wants and she tells me BOX CAKE?!
Children, they are such a stab in the heart!
I’m gonna make her a homemade cake mix and put it in a box! DON’T TELL HER!
Wait, she’s probably reading this. I GIVE UP.
By the way, here are a couple cute pics of how she and Weston spent THEIR summer vacation. (Fort Worth Stock Yards.)
That doesn’t look like BP! I’m glad that thing is tied up.
I don’t see any paint rollers anywhere, do you?
whaledancer says:
Morgan’s hair looks so cute that way; it’s a great look for her.
On July 20, 2011 at 2:37 am
Granny Trace says:
:woof: great picture of your kids. I bet you miss them lots!
Granny Trace
www,grannytracescrapsandsquares.com
On July 20, 2011 at 6:23 am
CATRAY44 says:
Morgan sounds like my kids, “Mom, buy some “real” food, please”… as in no more home made stuff, lol.
On July 20, 2011 at 8:45 am
CATRAY44 says:
HAHA, I commented in teh wrong section, lol
On July 20, 2011 at 8:46 am
CATRAY44 says:
Morgan sounds like my kids, “Mom, buy some “real” food, please”… as in no more home made stuff, lol.
On July 20, 2011 at 8:46 am
steakandeggs says:
Looks like they are having a good time. What amazed me the most about the picture of Morgan on the steer is all that green grass in the back ground. I live about 20 miles south of the Stock Yards and everything is completely burn up. We are in day 18 of over a 100 degrees and no rain. Kids seem to be able to take the heat better than us older folks. Me, I’m looking for a cool place to sit down.
Suzanne your summer projects are looking great. I just know all of you will really enjoy the new basement (Kitchen).
On July 20, 2011 at 9:48 am
Flowerpower says:
I still don’t know how you do it all? Do you actually sleep or is this time taken up for making cheese and cooking those delish looking things in the kitchen? :happyflower:
On July 20, 2011 at 10:02 am
Zusiqu says:
I live 15 minutes from those Stockyards. 🙂
On July 20, 2011 at 10:05 am
holstein woman says:
I’m with the rest of “us older folks”, my daughter only wanted store bought clothes. Since I was a dressmaker for 35 years, she longed for “those clothes”.
Pretty nice photos of the children and the downstairs is doing nicely. When you are finished painting your downstairs you can paint my house :yes: . I have a 2 story and it hasn’t been painted since DH’s dad painted it 40 something years ago. We are remodeling before we paint :turtle: .
On July 20, 2011 at 10:07 am
merng says:
Loving Morgan’s hair!
On July 20, 2011 at 10:12 am
KellyWalkerStudios says:
I meant to ask what type of paint you are using on the walls where I will be painting? Is it satin? gloss? flat?
On July 20, 2011 at 11:11 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
Kelly, it’s a semi-gloss!
On July 20, 2011 at 11:17 am
Liz Pike says:
And when she leaves home, she’ll look back fondly and say, “I wish I had some of Mom’s HOMEMADE cake!”
Love the pic of Morgan on the longhorn!!
On July 20, 2011 at 11:19 am
TinaBell says:
Your kids look great…like they’re having lots of fun. Morgan’s hair is super cute. She sounds JUST like my two teenagers that are still at home: We want REAL food! Baah! They complain there’s nothing to eat and when I tell them of all the food glories to behold they say, but we’d have to MAKE that; we want food you don’t have to cook!
WHAT?! *shakes head in dismay* My oldest son, who’s been out in the world for a couple years, NOW appreciates his Mama’s kitchen ways. Morgan will too, someday.
On July 20, 2011 at 12:32 pm
GA_in_GA says:
Oh do I ever understand enthusiasm waning about painting.
The summer before last, my daughter and I stripped the cute little girl wallpaper in her room and then I painted the walls, primer first since the wallpaper was on unprimed sheetrock. Then a base coat. My daughter then was allowed to do her own thing. She had a blast and I can always prime then paint when she leaves for college in a few years. :bugeyed:
Last summer I tackled my kitchen, laundry room, and my daughter’s bathroom. Wallpaper in every room. So, I stripped wallpaper then primed, then painted.
The only thing I wanted to tackle this summer was the chicken coop and run. Neither is painted. No wallpaper, either! Hens could care less! :chicken:
I
On July 20, 2011 at 5:37 pm
Therese says:
Box cake? Blasphemy! And I was going to say the same thing as steakandeggs about the green grass. We’re burning up out here! I’m having to water my mature trees to keep them from dying! :no:
On July 21, 2011 at 12:08 am
Glenda says:
Some day she will appreciate all those tasty home-made cakes!
They look like healthy, happy kids enjoying summer but won’t it be great to have them home again.
On July 21, 2011 at 5:30 am
Runningtrails says:
LOL! Kids are the same, the world over. Mine never wanted to cook anything either, just grab, heat and go and didn’t appreciate anything made for them either.
Burning up here too! I’m circulating the sprinkler through all the gardens.
On July 21, 2011 at 2:41 pm