NOT PLASTER!!!!

I learned the most AMAZING information last Monday night - we don't have plaster walls anywhere in the house.  They are all drywall!  This remarkable revelation changed everything.  The lump in my stomach went away whenever I thought about hanging pictures and for the rest of the week, I have been hanging paintings and pictures in every room.  The only area left to tackle is the kitchen/dining room.  So, next week's blog I promise will be a photo tour of our completely moved in home....

In addition to hanging lots and lots of pictures, I got several other home projects completed this week.

1.  Curtains:  the white king size cotton flat sheets that I ordered arrived and, because we have DRYWALL and NOT PLASTER, I was able to install curtain rods in the living and kitchen/dining rooms and we are no longer living in a fishbowl.  

2. Better kitchen storage:  a larger kitchen baker's rack (actually just a metal shelf unit) also arrived last week to replace the teeny one we originally ordered and it is now in use.  

3. Library bookcases:  I had thought I would paint black over the turquoise interiors of both large bookcases to match the black exteriors but, as I looked at the one bookcase lying flat on our kitchen floor after Steve installed the new shelf, I thought "these shelves are full of books and the color turqoiuse is hardly even noticable.  Why not just paint the new shelf turqoiuse and be done with it all?"  Since we would have been looking at books stacked up in piles waiting two weeks for the paint to "season", I really liked the idea of just painting one shelf.  So, I took a piece of the old shelf to be color matched and I brought home a little sample container of turquoise (in eggshell rather than semi-gloss but it hardly noticable.  I certainly didn't need a quart of semigloss of the color!) and that bookcase is now painted and back in the library and loaded with books on all but the top shelf.  

4.  Steve's major project this week was to get a shelf installed in the downstairs cedar closet and to shore up the wooden closet rod with some brackets.  He went back and forth on various ways to do this and I think he came upon a great solution.

5.  I have painted white several items:  a black curio shelf (that used to hang in our Columbia dining room), a purple wall shelf, and two picture frames.

6.  I am continuing to dig up grass/weeds in the back yard along the garage to make a flower bed.  I bought a bunch of daffodils to plant there and then, when they are through blooming, I will plant zinnias.  

Steve and I visited a couple of banks earlier in the week with the plan to switch from our current bank to one that has branches closer to our house.  A window company visited on Tuesday to examine why our bedroom windows won't stay open.  Happily, they just need to be repaired and not replaced and their price quote was well below the allotted amount the seller gave us for the problem.  On Tuesday evening, I attended a string quartet rehearsal comprised of members of the St. Louis Civic Orchestra of which I am now a member.  We sight read a bunch of music and I was happy to find that I was NOT the weakest link in the group.  The car got an oil change and two new headlights (yes, TWO!  We knew that one was out so we just drove with our brights on.  Evidently, the second headlight had eventually failed as well.  Yikes!) 

On Friday afternoon, as we were driving home from Menards, we got a text from Steven asking if we had dinner plans.  Steve replied "no, but we are two hours away".  Well, Steven and Tamara had some Outback Steakhouse gift cards and Columbia no longer has a franchise.  Because they were craving Outback, they decided to drive all the way to O'Fallon and they invited us to join them!  What a delightful - and delicious - surprise.  

Steve and I ventured out twice this past week on our bikes.  Sadly, the second time, my back tire went flat so I had to pause at the local school to await Steve while he rode back home to pick up the car to come get me and the bike.  Happily, there is a bike shop quite closeby and my tire is now fixed.  We are very much looking forward to bike riding around here.  There are plenty of bike lanes on the roads and parks with bike paths and, for the most part, the terrain is pretty level.  

Not much movie watching this past week but we did see "The Last Starfighter" (a low budget 80's film that was probably one of Robert Preston's last appearances) and "Pirates of the Caribbean - the Secret of the Black Pearl".  We own the movie and, with Disney+, we are planning to wade our way through the entire Pirates collection in future weeks.

I didn't take many photos this week but below are pictures from when I was waiting for Steve to pick me and my bike up.  You can see the cute styles of the houses in our neighborhood.  And, as I mentioned on Facebook, I was right by a Lutheran church that has bells that ring every quarter hour.  It is so lovely to hear.

 

Settling in - continued

Last week, Steve and I managed to make our way through the dozens of boxes and tubs labeled "knic knacks" that had been occupying a large section of our basement.  And, the nearby St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store was recipient of many boxes of donations throughout the week.  The rest of our things have been distributed around the house or repacked to be displayed on a knic knack shelf on a rotational basis.  However, this shelf needs to be repainted and hung on the wall.  As do most of the paintings and pictures AND curtain rods. We are STILL stressing about the plaster wall problem.  Google and Youtube have given many ideas (too many, almost) but on Saturday, we discovered that a man in our ward, Nathan Tripp, is a RETIRED HANDY-MAN and he and his wife are coming to our home tomorrow night to discuss our plaster walls and hopefully some of our other handyman needs.  We met Nathan and Brenda the first Sunday we attended church - Nathan was leading the music and Brenda was the organist so we already had a music connection.  They are avid bicyclists and we told them that once our garage was secure, we would be retrieving our bikes from our daughter's garage.  And now, we learned of this other important quality about them - Nathan can fix things!  They are probably about ten years younger than us and hopefully, we will become good friends.  During this past week, we did get things hung on the walls downstairs where there is drywall.  And, upstairs, we have gone through half of the rooms and decided where we want to hang everything.  That is an important first step....

Monday, we had our garage door replaced with money allotted by the seller when we bought the house.  It is SO nice and secure now.  Saturday we babysat grandkids so Emily and Joe could celebrate their 16th wedding anniversary and we brought home our bikes.  Earlier that day, it was at a ward art show where we discovered Nathan Tripp's skills.  I brought a few of my paintings and ceremics and he had some of his woodwork on display.  The event was held in the building parking lot so it was easy to be socially distant.  Thirteen individuals displayed their various pieces of art and it was so nice to get to know them and those in the ward who came to support the activity.  Here I am with my display...

Another bonus from yesterday was that I was able to sell our old router (well, it was only a year old but our internet company here in St. Louis doesn't use that particular router)!  I only got $50 for something I paid $150 for a year ago but that was a whole lot better than just putting it into a donations box!

Larkin came over for preschool on Tuesday and she had fun playing with a set of homemade pipe chimes that my older sister, Jerri, gave to our family years ago.  On Thursday, I was able to organize the toy area downstairs and next week, a new shelf is arriving for the kitchen so the new bakers rack we ordered - and discovered is very small - will move down to help organize the toy area.  I think the grandkids, and other children who visit, will enjoy playing in this space.  Photos will be shared when the shelf is in...

 

After church last Sunday, Steve and I set out to discover the childhood homes of Yogi Berra and Joe Garigiola who grew up across the street from each other on "The Hill" in St. Louis.  It is a part of town just a stone's throw from our home.  As we slowly drove down the one-way street, we saw that there were people visiting outside Yodi Berra's house so we rolled down the window to say "hello" and why we were stalking their home.  They were very friendly and told us that Jack Buck's home was at the end of the street!  No wonder the road carries the name "Hall of Fame Boulevard" under the actual name.  

Tuesday evening we had a fun family Zoom gathering  - although we missed Beckie.  Wednesday, I returned to the dentist in Columbia for the last time for my permanent crowns.  As per the entire experience up to then, it was traumatic.  He didn't numb me so it was also pretty painful.  But, I am thrilled to report that, aside from some sensitivity to cold, my new crowns are doing beautifully!  I can chew on my right side again - which I couldn't do with the temporary crowns.  I think all is going to be well.  And I hope I NEVER have to have another dental crown again!

I have found a community orchestra to join - the St. Louis Civic Orchestra - although they are currently not rehearsing due to Covid19.  And, I am actually going to be the orchestra administrator - a.k.a. personnel manager - which is a paying gig!  It is not a lot of money per month but every little bit helps.  The current administrator is Carolina Neves who I knew back in Columbia and who was one of the teachers that used our house during our mission.  She was who recommended me for the position.  And the conductor is Edward Dolbashion who was MU's long time orchestra director and whose orchestra I have played in for several years.  I am looking forward to a real orchestra season and in the meantime, I will be playing in a small ensemble comprised of orchestra members. 

Closing out this blog will be my movie report:  We re-watched "October Sky" (Jake Gyllenhall was so young - only 19 when the film was made) and "Frozen 2" (I just love Olaf!  and Anna's song The Next Right Thing) and last night, when the grandkids went to bed, we saw "Feel the Beat" on Netflix.  The protagonist is not someone you like for at least half of the movie but it turned out well and the little kids in the movie were delightful.  

Progress is being made

Except for hanging things on walls, the upstairs is mostly unpacked and even mostly organized.  The last part to complete was the family history portion of our library which we couldn't even begin to tackle until we picked up the last of the family history tubs from the duplex in Columbia on Thursday.  We have SO MUCH family history stuff:  all my parents things in tubs, all of Steve's parents things in tubs, and then all of our own stuff spanning over sixty years of living.  Our work going forward until we die is to organize, scan, and share all of this information.  And, now, happily, we can begin because we know how to find it!  We have begun to organize the downstairs now which feels very satisfying and we can FINALLY do our own laundry here at home!  Yesterday we hung coat hooks in closets and tool hooks in the garage.  

Yesterday, we also discovered our local library branch and got library cards.  And we have updated our voter registration information.  Gotta find a new bank as our current one doesn't have locations close to our house.  

We made a trip to Columbia on Wednesday for my dental work and I packed the day full of additional activities - a cello lesson, visits with Elise, Steven, and friends, pick up of the last items left at the duplex, dropping off dozens of baby hats to Women and Children's hospital (happily, they are again accepting donations!), and even some shopping at Menards (we are not close to one here.  Thankfully, there is one on the way to the Southerlands so we will start shopping there when we go on Thursdays for music lessons).  Whew!  It was fun but exhausting.

Speaking of fun, we had a great Labor Day weekend.  It started with a Sunday visit from family friends, Derek and Emily Ellingson and their six children.  We saw them back in early July as they had just moved up to Iowa after being in Alaska for over ten years.  This time, they were in St. Louis for the City Museum and the Science Center so they came to church with us and then we shared lunch in our shady backyard (they brought homemade sub sandwich fixings).  

Monday evening, we hosted a backyard feast of grilled hamburgers, tons of sides, and homemade ice cream with the Southerlands, Beckie, and Kyle and Micah.  Poodles Luna and Armand came along, too, much to the grandkids delight.  Everyone helped with the food.  We inaugurated our deck and it worked perfectly.  It is large enough to accomodate the long folding table to hold the food plus lots of chairs.  And, there were those built in benches, too.  The neighbor's huge oak and cedar trees provided shade and there was a nice breeze.  Perfect evening.  (below - Larkin and Luna)

NOT fun were the sewer problems we started to have very soon after moving in...in spite of trying to be pro-active and have it inspected and supposedly cleaned out before purchase!  Water AND sewage would back up from our basement floor drain.  It didn't spread very far (so nothing was damaged) but it was still horrifying.  I tried filing a claim through our newly purchased home warranty the first time I had to clean up poop on September 2nd but I didn't hear back from the company until Monday, the 7th!!!  And, we had a second sewage backup on Sunday the 6th so I called an emergency plumber and he found more roots coming in through damaged pipe!   He cleaned everything out but warned that the pipe would need to be repaired to prevent future issues.  Happily, though, since he came, we have had no backing up.  Now I am wrangling with plumbing companies, the home warranty company, and the seller's real estate agent to see who is going to pay for the ultimate repair.

I will end with our movie watching report.  I find my stamina is just not what it used to be and by after dinner, I am completly spent.  So we watch movies.  We saw the new "Mulan" with Beckie on Tuesday.  It was just fantastic.  We watched "All Together Now" on Netflix based upon Emily's recommendation.  It was very enjoyable.  We also watched "Remember the Titans" and never get tired of that movie.  Finally, we saw the new, live action "Lady and the Tramp".  I loved it.  I was very happy with the "what the early 20th century SHOULD have looked like" multi-cultural aspect.  I liked the new take on Jock the dog - hilarious.  And, I was charmed by the spaghetti eating scene.  

Next week - I hope we will be able to unpack the rest of the boxes and tubs in the basement!

Fun with family and settling in

Our week began with Larkin's birthday celebration on Sunday, August 30th.  She is a four year old!

Emily made a beautiful cake and we enjoyed a delicious dinner of pot roast.  

Larkin is coming to grandma's on Tuesdays for preschool.  We had our first class this past week.  Notice the cute little dress she is wearing?  That belonged to her mother!  A good friend in Virginia did the machine embroidery and I believe I sewed the dress.  The leggings with kitties on the knees are not vintage, however.  How appropriate that her birthday gift from Steve and me was a little stuffed kitty with her own pet carrier complete with a food dish, pretend can of cat food, and pretend perfume bottle with a brush and comb.

Tuesday evening, we entertained Beckie for dinner.  Homemade pizza.  

Thursday, Elise came to visit.  Beckie joined us for lunch at a BBQ place literally around the corner from our house.  We had noticed the lighted Budweiser sign in front and just assumed that it was a bar.  But, it is also a restaurant and it is called the Stellar Hog.  They had just opened up their patio for outdoor dining that day!  The food was amazing and portions generous.  We had a nice chat with the owner (we were the only customers) and he claims that the place is the oldest continuous running beer garden west of the Mississippi.  The building is the original farm house in the neighborhood.  That is my bottle of BBQ sauce on the table since their sauce has gluten (many teriaki and soy sauces are made with wheat and are often a key ingredient in BBQ sauce).  

Beckie couldn't join us at Emily's that afternoon since she had to work.  We had dinner there and I gave Quinn and Lucy piano lessons and played cello duets with Noah.  All three kids are truly ideal students.  They are smart, they practice, they are progressing.  A joy to teach!

As far as how we are settling into our new place, we made a LOT of progress this past week.  The first step was a marathon shopping trip at Menards hardware for all kinds of things  - the most immediate need being lumber.  We needed a board for a shelf to finish the organ desk.  A board to finish one of our large bookcases (the top shelf  had previously been configured to hold a television.  Since our TV is in a different room, we needed it to hold books again).  Boards to convert a 4-shelf bookcase into a 5-shelf to hold our DVDs.  A board to cut to make shelves for the smaller downstairs cedar closet as well as a wood rod and closet rod hardware to get the larger cedar closet functional.  And, with all the supplies, we were able to finally unpack all our dozens of boxes of books and load them onto the shelves.  Ultimately, I want to paint the inside of the shelves black to match the outside but that will be down the road.  The DVD shelf is now finished, the stain is dry, and it is ready to be loaded up.  We unpacked all of our pictures and paintings this week (we have SO MANY - too many for the walls we have) but hanging even a portion of them is yet to happen because we have PLASTER walls!!!  I am very intimidated with them and we want to consult with a handyman before attempting to hang anything.  Oh, and apparently, Command strips are the way to go for the lighter pictures and so Beckie is going to get us some the next time she shops at Costco.  We are still living in a fishbowl because I want the handyman to install the curtain rods.  But, at least our living room is somewhat "normal" now.  I was able to teach Ethan Barner's cello lesson in there on Friday.  I cleaned off the rust from the iron bed side bars and the guest bed is now set up.  Gotta go back to Menards to get cross boards, though, so no one can actually sleep on it yet.  I ordered coat hooks on Amazon and we have them installed in most of the closets.  A couple of closets won't accommodate the taller hooks so I have ordered shorter ones.  Steve mowed the lawn on Monday and that evening we organized the garage.  Someone was throwing away a wonky old small homemade table and we are now storing tools on it.  Our neighbor had a heavy old narrow beat up table and it is now my potting table.  I think next week, Steve and I can start to tackle the basement?  Slowly but surely we are making progress.  As much as our aging bodies will allow.