Hang It UP!

I don't care for doing the laundry. Except durning the summer. I love hanging clothes on the line. Seriously. It is so great! The feeling of the cool, damp clothes against my warm skin. The cat winding in between my feet meowing for attention. I find it relaxing and quite enjoyable. Much more so than shuffling the lump of wet laundry from the washer to the dryer like some drowned corpse of the week's apparel. No one hangs out in the laundry room with me while I do the chore. But the kids and the animals will follow me out to the back yard, into the sunshine and fresh air, while I hang things on the line. Win win.


Also, I know that it may seem like it increases the amount of time and energy used to complete the task, but it is actually a time saver in addition to being more enjoyable. How you ask? Mostly by eliminating ironing. Plus on a nice warm day with a tiny breeze, clothes actually dry faster on the line than in the dryer. By the time the wash is done, the line is dry! Here are some hints to make it the best experience possible.

• Invest in sturdy clothespins. They are about a buck.
• Place the line as conveniently as possible in the yard. Retractable is nice. So are the big roundabouts. But line between fenceposts works and I can prove it.
• Shaking out wrinkles and then hang t-shirts upside down, trying not to stretch the bottoms too far apart, keeps everything in a nice shape.
• Straightening out the insides of pockets and pulling or shaking out the wrinkles before hanging things, keeps that bunched-up, linty pocket thing from happening.
• Follow me and you will never iron a button down shirt again for the whole summer! Finger press the button fronts and the bottom edge (that always curls up) by pulling them flat. Then use clothes pins to weight them down. Gravity and the slightest breeze will do the ironing for you. (Unless you are a freaking perfectionist who has to have a crease in the front of jeans and boxers. In that case, there is no hope for you.)
• Turn graphic T's inside out before hanging. At my house all laundry is inside out anyway, so this is no big deal. Turning the graphics to the inside helps prevent fading, because let's face it, no one wants to don a charcoal gray Darth Vader Tee. Lame.

Quote of the Day: "My second favorite household chore is ironing.  My first being hitting my head on the top bunk bed until I faint.  ~Erma Bombeck

ListenUp: Sir Paul is 70!

I am pretty sure that we all remember our first solo experiences with music. Meaning, music that we listened to on our own. Solo, in our rooms with a small boombox or walkman. Or in my case, a hi-fi turntable with headphones bigger than the ones they use in the cockpit of a jumbo jet. But hey! It was 1980. And even though, technically this was not the music of my generation, but rather the music my of my parents' era, I was hooked! I nearly wore out a double album compilation, and the White Album. We watched the movies, and the grainy footage. It was more than just music. Those mischievous, mop-topped, wisecrackin' lads from Liverpool introduced me to Rock n' Roll and ushered in my teenage years in style. I was never burdened with having to listen to the nonsense pop music of my own generation (except for a somewhat misguided albeit very devoted Duran Duran phase in jr high.)  No doubt, growing up, it was the Beatles in my house and it still is. So today we honor the music and the legend that is The Beatles. WHY you ask?  Because today Sir Paul McCartney is 70....

(I wish he were with the other boys and not these guys, but Linda is on tambourine...)

Quote of the Day: "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."
--Paul McCartney adorable old guy and genius lefty 

UpLift: Adoption Prayers

This may be a little bit different post than you are used to me dishing out, but I am nothing if not flexible. Ha! I want to introduce you to a sweet couple. This is Katie and Adam. I have known Katie since she was about 10 years old. Her parents live just down the road from us.

Katie and Adam are going through something that I cannot imagine. They want to raise a family, and as of yet have been unable to have children bless their home. They are now looking to adopt. Today, I am using this forum to get the word out as best I can. Read their story and get to know them. Pass it on if you feel so inclined. Perhaps someone knows of a child who is looking for a home, because this home is praying for a child...

Quote of The Day: "When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses."  ~Joyce Brothers

Living It Up

Ahhhh....

I think I may be having a midlife crisis. Don't worry, the good kind. I have never really had one before. I am not even sure this is the middle of my life. I mean one can never really be sure of that sort of thing, you know, until you get to the end of the thing, then you can look back and go...ahhh...so that was the middle. So for now, we are just going to assume that I will live to be at least 84. And just in case any of you were wanting to get your own midlife crisis, I am passing along the informal rules and regulations.

How to have a midlife crisis in 7 easy steps...(can be done in any order)

• Buying a convertible. I do not live in a climate that would allow me to use a convertible for any more than 2 months out of the year. So I cut my hair off instead. A minimum of 30 day waiting period should be implemented before making any drastic physical changes. You have been warned.
• Realizing that now is the "glory days" not then. What was so freaking great about 16? Or 21? or even 29? Duhrama. No money. More zits. Absolutely NO clue. Ok, sure, maybe we had a better physique, or less wrinkles, but you know what they say about an ounce of wisdom and a pound of crows' feet.
• Tearing up the bucket list. I guess it sounds nice in theory. But it also sounds like a list for the future when we ought to be living for the here and now. Reinvention is the name of this game and it is hard to ebb and flow with the winds of change when we are tied down to a list. If something strikes us now as new and exciting then by all means, if we have the means, we should make it happen now, not wait to check it off some list someday.
• Letting go of fear. This is not a fearful time. This is a time of following that inner inspiration to make life better. The first half of life was hopefully spent establishing a foundation, now we have the opportunity to live the life we have created. 
• Enjoying the hard work we have done. You know how it feels to look around a nice clean house, or a freshly mowed lawn and pat yourself on the back for a job well done? At mid-life, hopefully we have done a lot of the hard work. It is time to enjoy the kids. Spend time with the Hunky Hubby. Take pleasure in the things we have accomplished. 
• Sheding the skin. Like a snake, every so often we may realize that we have outgrown where we are at this moment and notice that we may be doing the same old things just because we are used to them. It is ok to let go of habits that may no longer fulfill us as they used to. Finding new hobbies can be rewarding. Liberating even!
• Stop reading someone else's ideas and go out and make your own way. Seriously. I mean it. Go. Now.

Quote of the Day: "It is sad to grow old, but nice to ripen!" 

--Brigitte Bardot