And we're back!!

I didn't realize that it had been a whole month since my last post.  Since then, a lot has happened, and I think my overwhelming schedule has really gotten the best of me.  (FYI - I just starting singing Best of Me by The Starting Line in my head....)

Since my last post, a LOT has happened.  I'll give you a brief rundown.  And then hopefully my I can continue to move on with my blogging.

So....Here goes:

I spend most of the month of July packing up our Condo.  The rent for our tenants officially started on August 1, so we were really under the gun to get all of our stuff out of there.  This proved to be an extremely difficult task.  Why?  BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MUCH STUFF!!!  My mother was a huge help - she came over multiple times and helped me pack up my life.  And as she said, it really looks like we have been married for 20 years instead of 2.  Yes, that's really how much stuff we have.  We rented a storage unit at Mink Street Storage, which is a stone's throw away from the house.  We filled up a 10x10 unit with no problem, and we actually had to reserve a second 5x10 unit (and yes, we still had more stuff that couldn't fit - which is now spread out between my mother's basement, her garage and the storage unit in the condo building).  All of the furniture and some of the boxes were moved on Saturday, July 21 (My brother helped us quite a bit).  More boxes were moved during the week (Thanks to my cousin Carolyn).  The rest of everything we had was moved out between Thursday and Friday.  

To complicate matters even more, we had a contractor at the Condo ripping out the carpet from the 2 bedrooms and putting in engineered hardwood floors, as well as repainting the bathroom.  So we had to work around him to pack everything that was remaining (we finished around 11pm on Friday, July 27 - since we were leaving for Vacation on the 28th, we needed to give the tenants the keys a couple days early).  I think it's safe to say that I was about 2 degrees away from crazy.

We left the condo fully furnished for our tenants, and I have to say, it looked AMAZING.  If I were a student, I would want to live there.  The kitchen was left fully furnished with a table/4 chairs, plates, bowls, mugs, glasses, silverware, utensils, knives, a coffee pot and a few more extras I can't even think of right now.  The common/living area was left furnished with a reclining love-seat  reclining chair, coffee table, rug, television and stand.  Two of the bedrooms were furnished with a full-sized bed, dresser, desk and chair (the third bedroom was tenant furnished - and it doesn't compare to the other two rooms).  It really is a sight to be seen and we were really proud of the end result!!

ONe of the bedrooms set up with a bed (there is a desk to the left and a dresser to the right, too!)

Kitchen Table and Chairs

Living area with Sofa and Recliner...We added a coffee table in, too!

So Friday we handed over the keys, and that night we slept at my mom's house.  Since the house isn't ready yet, we're staying there in the interim (as I told one of my friends, we are temporarily homeless and staying at my mom's until the house is ready).  We still have a few things left to do at the condo, but since they are little things, we said we would get to them after our vacation.  

So vacation:  

I woke up Saturday morning with my ankles still hurting from all the physical work that I did on Thursday and Friday.  My ankles were actually swollen (YES SWOLLEN), and I was not a happy camper. We woke up at the crack of dawn and started packing for our trip, as well as running to the market for food for the week.  Our friends Mallory and Josh picked us up, and we were off to Woods Hole to pick up the Ferry to Martha's Vineyard.  Now, we went to MV last year with the same group of people, and I'd say we had just as much fun, if not more.  We did a lot of different things than last year, and it was really a great trip!  We brought Mal and Josh's car over (it made it so much easier bringing food - we didn't have to carry it on the boat) and we also brought our bikes (which we didn't ride AT ALL this year).  So here's a quick rundown:

Our Rented house in Edgartown!

Saturday:  Travel Day.  We got to the house, met up with the other couples who were going (we all got there at different times), played some yard drinking games, and Scott and I made a run to the liquor store for some stuff.






Sunday:  Nate's only day.  Kristen's husband was only able to stay for a full day, so we spent the day down in Oak Bluffs, walking around and doing some shopping.  We rounded out the night with Macaroni and Cheese - and even though my ankles were more like cankles and I was EXHAUSTED, it was my best batch ever.  

The Gayhead Lighthouse

The Cliffs at Gayhead

Monday:  Beach day!  We took a ride down to Gayhead, explored the cliffs and the lighthouse, and went down to the beach.  Gayhead is a dry town, but you're allowed to BYOB to the beach - as long as you sit in a specific area.  So that we did.  I think I got most of my tan this day...

Our Entertaining bartenders!

Tuesday:  Edgartown.  We spent the day in Edgartown, shopping and exploring.  The morning was beautiful, but when we all met up for lunch at the Seafood Shanty, it looked like everything was clouding over.  After lunch, we all separated again, and then ended up meeting at the bar at Seafood Shanty again, where it proceeded to POUR, the bar emptied out and we had a great time drinking too much and hanging out with our Lobster and Shark Bartenders.  Kristen left Tuesday night - we almost had her convinced to stay another night, but no dice :(

Scott and Me, at the Wasque Beach

Wednesday:  Mal, Josh, Scott, and I all went to Chappaquiddick on Wednesday while Ed and Courtney went to Oak Bluffs.  We took the car over on the On Time and got to explore more than last year (since we couldn't take the bikes on the dirt roads last year).  We got to see the the Mytoi Gardens, the infamous Ted Kennedy Bridge, and the Wasque Point and Beach.  





Thursday:  FISHING CHARTER!  I think this was my high point of the trip.  Mallory did all of the scouting for charters and we found a great boat that held about 30 people, and took us a few miles off the coast of Oak Bluffs.  We had an amazing time, and actually got to keep the fish that we caught.  It really was a great experience, and I'd love to do it again!!

Friday:  Kind of an everything day.  Courtney and Ed made themselves breakfast, and Scott and I headed out to have breakfast at The Edgartown Inn (which I would definitely recommend if you have the chance).  Scott and I did a little bit of shopping in Oak Bluffs and I finally found a hooded sweatshirt that I like.  We met up with the group in the afternoon to go out to Menemsha to see the sun set.  Unfortunately, as soon as we got there, the skies clouded over and there was no sun to be seen!  We'll have to add it to the list of things to do next year.  :)  We did find out, however, that Quint's cabin (in the movie JAWS), was filmed here!!

A couple of boats at the docks in Menemsha

Saturday:  Returning Home.  It was a sad day....The week went by so fast!!

The week seemed to zoom by once it passed, but we had a great time!!  We came away with lots of laughs, and lots of stories to share!

So I guess that's a good enough reason for not blogging for a month, huh?  It was just such a busy time, that I really didn't have two seconds to myself.  But for now, I think things are slowing down enough that I'll be able to get back to the computer and actually write about a few different things.  My ideas for the next few entries are Macaroni and Cheese (It's so delicious, why shouldn't we have another recipe for it??), different dinners, and naturally, more house stuff :)

Oak Bluffs on Dwellable

From Wallpaper to Paint, and everything in between

We are finally done stripping wallpaper!

This weekend, we started cleaning the walls (we're cleaning with TSP before priming/painting).  I managed to survive the weekend with blisters (from raking the yard after mowing), a burn on my arm (from accidentally touching a light bulk while I was finishing stripping the bathroom), a shock (I managed to shock myself while washing the wall - I think the sponge hit the electric socket), and a light bulb blew up in my face while I was cleaning (I think I dripped water on it).  

Hopefully I'm done injuring myself!!! :o)

For the love of baking soda

I've talked in the past of my love of baking soda.  I've used it in a couple of different applications (I was able to clean a brand new stainless pan that I decided to fry eggplant in).  In going through Pinterest (my favorite obsession), I found a another method for using baking soda - this time to clean a glass-top stove.  I have a glass top stove, and personally, I can't stand it.  Everyone raves about how easy it is to clean, blah blah blah, but I find it more annoying than anything else.  I feel like it always looks dirty and I can never seem to get it clean.

Well not any more!!!

Stuff Needed

-Big bowl full of hot soapy water

-Baking Soda

-Dish Towel

How to clean your glass-top stove with baking soda!!!

My disgustingly dirty cook top

Sprinkle baking soda liberally over the soiled cook top

I cleaned my cook top one half at a time based on the side of the dish towel

Submerge the dish towel into the hot soapy water.  Wring it out but make sure it is sufficiently soggy.  Place the wet towel over the baking soda.

 

On the first half, I wrang out too much of the water.  I ended up having to do it twice in order to get it cleaned the way I wanted.  

Set the timer!!  10-15 minutes, depending on how dirty the cook-top is!

When the timer goes off, swirl the dish towel around and make a paste out of the water and scrub scrub scrub.  Make sure you rise out the towel multiple times to wash the baking soda off the cook-top (if not, you'll have a clean but streaky glass cook-top).

And voilà!

My beautifully CLEAN cook-top!

Cleaning out my closet...

It's amazing the things you find in your closet after not going through them for a while...I have a closet where the entire top shelf is full of t-shirts, sweat pants, work out clothes, etc. 

Within the mess that exists in that closet, the multitude of t-shirts just sit there because I just don't wear them. I have them separated into categories: High School, UMass, Concerts, Work, and Random. The high school category mostly consists of shirts from the era: when I worked at Sundaes the ice cream shop, and random t's from or around high school. I've kept a selection mostly for sentimental reasons.  The UMass category is a collection of t's obtained mostly from the college of engineering, with a few that I either got for free or actually purchased. The work category is just free t's from promotions at work. The concert and random category are exactly that. 

It's pretty safe to say that I don't wear any of the shirts from highschool.  I wear a small selection of the UMass shirts, but not all of them.  The work shirts I wear all the time, as well as most of the random shirts.  The Concert Shirts are just there to remind me of some of the shows I've been to.  I have an amazing Paul McCartney shirt (that my brother tried to steal at one point), Eric Clapton, Green Day, etc.  I never wear those shirts.

It's fun to take a run down memory lane and look over the shirts...
I've included a few samples of what I came across, for your viewing pleasure :)

Enjoy!

"I am not a morning person" - I got this for free while walking through the campus center at UMass

 

A front and Back view - "Ask Me!"  "I Know STUFF" - we wore these when we toured the Freshmen around at Cranston West

"I Love To Watch UMASS DEBATE" - Say it out loud....There you go....This is probably the best $10 I every spent....

Folding Sheets

My mom has an amazing method of folding sheets.  I call it a method, because each set of sheets that she has is a work of art, and the only way to consistently produce such a neat bundle of sheets is to have a method.


As a child, I remember (quite often) deciding that I wasn't going to take a nap, so my mom would have me help her fold the laundry.  While I was usually in charge of folding the face-cloths (in half, and in half again), I often helped to fold the sheets - It's always easier to have two people folding sheets...  


In college, I remember one of my roommates having trouble specifically with the fitted sheet.  I showed her my mom's method, and then said, and here's what I do with the rest of the sheets!  I love passing this method on, because it not only saves room in the linen closet, but it also looks pretty (or as pretty as sheets can get).


I'm going to go through how my mom folds her fitted sheets, which is the main part to "the method" .... I'm not going to go through the folding of the flat sheet - that one is easy!


So here goes (in picture form, of course :o) )

Fold the corners into each other by having one corner inside-out and folding it into the corner that is right side out.  Once your fold one corner into the other, do it on the other side, too

Lay your fitted sheet on the bed (or table) so that the all of the corners are folded into one area (in this case, the top left corner)

Fold the right side into the middle, and then continue to fold the fitted sheet by bringing the left side over (folding the sheet in 3's), and then folding up by 3's again.  You'll end up with a nice rectangle.  If your sheets are big enough, you can fold them in 4's and probably get a perfect square.

Fold the flat sheet into a rectangle (which is always so much easier than folding the fitted sheet) and stack the two together.  My mom gets hers to be the exact same size, I am not that good.

Take your matching pillowcases and fold them in half the long way

Put your stack of sheets right in the middle of the pillow cases

And you've got a bundle.

All of my sheets are folded like this.  The best part is, you never have to go searching for your pillow cases!!

The amazing uses of Baking Soda

I think that at one time, Baking Soda was regarded as one of the greatest and most versatile things possible.  However, throughout the years, we have put out different products that essentially contain Baking Soda, but are advertised as something else.  In all honesty, I had no idea that Baking Soda could do what it does!

I came across this revelation this morning, actually, because over the weekend, I made eggplant (possibly one of the most delicious foods in the world).  Now I usually look for the healthy way to make foods, but when it comes to eggplant, the best way to make it is to fry it!  Now, with frying just about anything, I've found that you're going to make a mess.  And this frying experience was no exception.  I used one of my beautifully shiny tri-ply shallow pans and fried a ton of eggplant, and found that I had grease stains all over it that neither soap and water or white vinegar would take off.  How upsetting!

As I was making my morning coffee this morning, I all of a sudden said, what about Baking Soda?  Poured some all over the pan, ran some super hot water, took a little scrubby (not metal) and ..... results!  I'm so excited.  So in a follow up to my awesome revelation, I've done some research, and here's a list of just a few things that Baking Soda can do!

• In the Kitchen
• Put a small box or bowl in the fridge/freezer/cupboard to keep away odors
• Sprinkle a little in the bottom of the garbage can, and a little more after you put a new bag in, to reduce garbage odors!
• Put out a grease fire with a little B S
• Sprinkle B S on a damp cloth to clean surfaces.  Rinse with clean water.
• Rinse food containers with hot water and B S to remove stale smells.  Soak longer if the smell persists.
• Sprinkle the floor with B S and wipe with a warm, damp cloth.  This will help remove scuff marks and grease spills.
• For burnt-on food in the bottom of pots, sprinkle with B S, then add hot water.  Let soak overnight, the dried on food will come loose much more easily
• Clean the Microwave, oven, coffee pot, or tea pot
• Polish your silverware with 3 parts B S and 1 part water - rinse thoroughly
•  
• In the Bathroom
• Make toothpaste and use as a mouth wash
• Use as a facial scrub and exfoliant
• Use as a deodorant
• Use to treat bites and itches
• Use with your shampoo to help your hair to be healthier
• Use a B S paste (3 parts BS, 1 part water) to remove stubborn stains from most surfaces.  Apply, let stand, then scrub or wipe clean.
• Clean hairbrushes and combs in a combo of BS and water
• Pour 1/4 cup BS down the drain weekly, rinsed with hot water to avoid clogged drains.
• Around the House
• Sprinkle smelly carpets with BS, let stand for at least 15 minutes then vacuum.  This will help remove the smells.
• Put B S in the bottom of each ashtray for smokers.  This will help keep away some of the stale smoke smell
• Children's toys can be cleaned using 1/4 cup B S in 1 quart warm water.  Submerge the toy in the mixture, or wipe with a damp cloth, and rinse with clear water.
• In the Laundry
• Replace half of each measure of laundry detergent with BS to keep clothing fresh
• Pretreat grease stains on clothes with a BS paste
• If using chlorine bleach, BS will increase effectiveness.  Add 1/2 cup to your laundry along with the usual amount of bleach.
• Yard and Garage
• Helps clean up grease spills
• Remove burnt food from the grill.
• Cleans lawn furniture

All items were found via here and here.

ENJOY!!!!!

Laundry

I don't hate doing laundry.  I find it to be a mindless task that takes up too much time.  When I was young, I used to help my mom do the laundry by matching socks, folding underwear, and folding face cloths.  Once in a while, she would have me help her fold the sheets.  She taught me this method of folding the sheets:  She would fold the fitted sheet into a perfect square and stack it with the flat sheet.  Then she would fold the pillow cases in half the long way and wrap them around the stack of sheets to make a neat little set (this way, you would never lose the pillow cases).  I taught my friend Amy this method in college; As far as I know, she still folds her sheets this way.
 
I've lived in my own place for almost four years now (my, how the time flies).  I love my condo, but if I could, I would change one thing:  I would get laundry into my own unit.  I'm honestly not even sure if I would be allowed to put it in my unit (I would have to check the condo documents).  In any case, because the laundry is in the basement, and I live on the 3rd floor, I find that I wait overly long spans of time to do laundry.  It's a good thing I have a ridiculous amount of clothes.

Early this afternoon, my husband sent me a BBM (Our usual mode of communication during the work day).  He asked if I had laundry that needed to be done.  He had previously noted that I had started to create a little "sock graveyard" next to the bed, so he collected up the socks.  He figured that he would just add those to his own laundry that he was planning on washing today.  But when he messaged me, I told him that the clothes in my closet as well as the massive pile of clothes on the little table next to the dresser also all needed to be washed.  Well, the husband ended up doing 3 loads of laundry for me today (and none of his own).  I should also note that when he washed my clothes, he also followed all of the washing directions on the tags.  Props for that:  I usually just separate into dark and light, and wash...

I don't hate doing laundry.  I just hate the stair-master workout that I get every time I need to do some laundry...