My Husband, The Hero

In addition to being the most creative spouse in this house, Ward also saved us a bunch of money this evening. Here is the tale:

It feels as though everything is falling apart. His truck has been in the shop 3 times this month, our printer has stopped printing (thus further complicating the Christmas Invitation task) and recently our washer has been testy. It is a Kenmore Elite HE4T with a bad attitude. We've owned it for just over 2.5 years and only recently has it been giving us error messages like F02 and SUD. Being a HE washer I only use HE Tide and never put very much soap in it but still the messages when I finally looked it up on the internet and found that baby socks, pencils or nails could have blocked the drain pipe. I had Ward look into this a week ago because since the babies were born I have lost quite a few of their socks never to be seen again. Well last week he found 13 socks, two baby washclothes and one of my socks in the liner around the wash tub. We were almost thrilled (I had thrown out some of those other socks, and some of them were very cute) and thought the washer was going to be happy with us. Unfortunately, the problem continued. I would just clear the machine when I got the error message and have to rewash entire loads (which was a huge waste of water, electricity and time) and was beginning to wonder if I should call Kenmore when today the washer would NOT rinse a load of clothes. No matter what we did only more and more water filled the tub.

After the kids went to bed I got the trusty shop vac out and sucked the water out and rinsed the clothes in the sink and put them in the dryer for the time being until we could fix the washer. I found a website called FIX YA and found a possible solution to our washers problem, the drain inside the machine, not just the liner, could have blockages.

Ward was able to locate the drain and what did he find?

Four more baby socks, a Color Guard sheet, a pencil in pieces and an assortment of nails and screws. You wouldn't believe how many small things had gotten in their and blocked the drain. We cleaned her up and put her back together and ran the load again, this time our old washer ran like a charm. No problems.

Apparently, my washer doesn't read my blog either, because I did thank her earlier in the week. She must have been feeling over worked and under appreciated. I'm going to have to clean her drains and liners more often (and gosh these HE washers are a lot of work)!

-june

*I was completely aware that these socks had gone missing. My mother-in-law told me that they just go out in the drain and disappear into the septic tank. I was saddened but never thought they would block up the washer because I am dense, just ask Ward. I am going to have to start using those laundry bags I think.

I Just Wanna Hear Some Rhythm

Is is weird that I dance like Kevin Bacon in Footloose to Bruce Springsteen's Radio Nowhere?

Should I close my blinds so the neighbors can't see me?

Do you think I am embarrassing the youngins?

-june

The Great Procrastinator

I shouldn't be here.

I should be cleaning, folding laundry, and vacuuming. Making grocery lists and Sam's lists. I have a lot to do and the twins nap more and more briefly all the time ( I am NOT complaining, they sleep 10-12 hours at night and that ROCKS!).

But I am a procrastinator. I make lists. I know things need to be done. But I put them off and put them off until the last possible minute.

It finally dawned on me today, that I have a lot to do this week. Packing, cleaning, making graduation invitations, sending said invitations, bill paying, filing, an exercise regimin to begin, parties to attend, parties to throw, clean up, blah, blah, blah.

I spent three hours this morning listening to two children cry while I attempted to make the guest bedroom presentable and clean the bathroom. We have about 12 rooms in our house, at that rate (1.5) hours per room I am never going to get it all done today. And the guest bedroom and bath are usually the fastest cleaned.

So I had finally cleaned those two rooms and I checked my email to see if I had any new album recommendations and I had an email from a friend wanting to come and stay this weekend at our house with his girlfriend and their three kids. I had extended the invitation a month ago and emailed them two weeks ago and had heard no confirmation so I assumed it wasn't going to happen. This afternoon I get an email that all five of them are coming tomorrow morning and staying until Monday, if that's OK still? Well, I extended the offer and I am not going to rescind it so I went down to Ricky's room (still working on names for my brother) and had to clean sheets, and pick up trash and laundry and clean his bathroom. I did accomplish that in about an hour but now I have three more loads of laundry backed up in the laundry room and less time to get everything else done.

And I have a tee-ball game at 6 p.m. and we need to go to Sam's now instead of tomorrow and we need to buy sod to put around the deck so that the people here on Sunday for the BBQ don't have to trapse through dirt. And I have children whom at only 4 months have already caught seperation anxiety, is that even possible? (Coop is in my lap as I type this, he has had to accompnay me all over the house this morning and if I leave him for even a moment he breaks down).

I know half glass empty, we'll here's the filler. I have friends who want to come and stay with us. I have children whom want me to hold them and hate when they can't see me. I have a bunch of people coming over Sunday because they want to hang out. I have to put sod down because Ward added on a nice deck addition. I have rooms to clean because I live in a house. I have a tee ball game to go to because I want to be involved in my God child's life. I have a party to go to tomorrow because I have a sister whom just moved and got old this week and I am going to help her celebrate. I have guest bedrooms to clean because my brother and sister-in-law are coming to stay with us. I have packing to do because we are going out of town. I have graduation invitations to make because I have a brother who is graduating from high school. I am lucky. Really, really, lucky.

But lazy.

I am such a procrastinator.

-june