Motivation of responsibility

As said yesterday, I now own the house in my own and only name. Today was ANZAC day, so no school, and another sunny windless day. So with the knowledge that I was working on my own home, and not his, I did some work round the place.

Ages ago I started painting the laundry window. As I hadn't finished I had not re-connected the window fastenings. So for about 3 months, every time we open the window there is nothing to stop it blowing right back. Today I painted two coats of top coat on it, and fixed the fastening back on. It still amazes me how FINISHING these fairly small tasks (it took about an hour all up but in stages) makes me SO happy. My painting skills are improving - definitely looks good.

Then I went to son#2's window and chiseled out the putty that was still hanging in there, and replaced it with new fresh putty. Strangely, I love putting putty in windows. There is an element of sculpture to it, and because putty is a soft oil based mouldable goo, I can carve it and smooth it, and generally play with it much the same as kids play with their food.

Just goes to show - I haven't changed from being a kid, except that I know where and when to do the fun things.

Son#1 got out of bed at 0400 this morning so he could go to the Dawn Service for ANZAC. I normally have to beg, plead and eventually yell him out of bed in the morning, so I didn't believe him when he said he was going. So I was rather surprised to find the kitchen light on at 5.30 this morning. He biked into town. Not meeting anyone particular there - but being a small town he saw lots of people he knew there. IN-DE-PEN-DANT.There's more going on in that head than comes out that mouth... He turns 12 tomorrow.

Sun befuddled ramblings

Its been amazing weather lately. After the summer without sun and without drought, we now have the autumn with both sun and drought. The garden is bolting along due to me putting water on it, while the lawn is starting to burn off. They call it global weirding.

At lunch I sat outside, in the sun, alone. The others sat inside and talked to each other about impressively mindless things. I like to sit and chat most times, but I often go back to the class room more peopled out than I was at the start of break. I sat outside and soaked up the sunshine, and relaxed into the quiet. And went back to class, ready for the noise.

In fact, class was quiet last thing, as I tried to explain linkage to tired and heat befuddled year 13's. I'm not sure any of us made much progress. At least there is no school tomorrow, so we have a day to find and engage our brains. Then a two day teaching patch, 2 day weekend, 5 day teach, 3 day weekend. Its a strange term...

Oh, and today the exband got his payout, and I got a mortgage.

End of a good thing

Tomorrow it's back to earning my living, and the boys go back to school too. Its been a great holiday, I think in part because we had no great ambitions to achieve anything. We did do a few things - the vege garden has several new plants, and less weeds, the house got cleaned, we visited some people and made lots of extremely good food. But it all just flowed along rather than being strained over. That's what we will miss when school starts - its all stress and deadlines. Dead lines.
As of tuesday I will be a separated woman - he will have his payment, and I will be sole owner of the house. I will also have a mortgage - did you know that translates to death grip??!! Lovely.
One of the things I finished in the holiday was son #2's blanky. It is a length of material, cut in half and sewn together to make a large rectangle. Then pinned to a polar fleece blanket , stippled and bound.

Cheap blanket - $20 - cheaper than batting

I discovered the power of the blue tape.
Works better than white or green!

The whole room was full of blanky

Used Leah's tip on zig zagging the binding
GOOD TIP.

One very happy customer - the best kind!

I should note the blanky goes round him twice in this photo. I only stopped stippling when thread ran out, and the size is pretty consistent, and LARGE. I have several new skills thanks to Leah.

So now I have to bind the asian fabric quilt and the holiday projects are finished. FINISHED.

The third day

It's the third day  of my holiday, and also the third day of Easter. We went to Mass tonight. Son#2 has to sit with us now and stay out of the crying room. He doesn't cry in there - it sounds like he is organising the super bowl though! yelling and banging.

The exband bought son#2 a length of fabric printed with sharks. I don't mind that part, but it seems it is my job to turn the fabric into something he can use. Which as I have a 'to do' list longer than I can actually recite I find his attitude ... annoying! He must think I don't have anything much to do with a full time job and full custody!!! But onwards.

I am pinning the fabric to polar fleece and turning a boring blue blanket into an exciting quilt. And I get to stipple the whole thing if I want to so should have big scale stippling sorted out by the end! Pinning it is really hard. The pins don't go through easily. Either the fabric is very high density - it sure looks tough - or pinning through polar fleece on an angle is hard because of all the threads. Dunno, but my fingers sure hurt.

Cleaned up the back yard today - swept, trimmed and weeded. Looks fantastic. Checked when to move the rhubarb and its June/July, so its a long wait to finish the final garden off. Ate first feijoa yesterday - feel so clever eating fruit out of the back yard.

The first day of the holidays

I  did a load of washing.

I went to put the irrigation on in one of the gardens, and when I turned the tap, the fitting snapped. I found a spare fitting, and fixed it. And put the irrigation on!

I cleaned the oven. (I don't like this job. It takes ages, is lots of work, and smells disgusting. I used to do it every holiday so it never got too dirty, and wasn't such a horrific job. I've been lazy for at least a year, and it feels great to have the job done, but that doesn't mean I enjoyed doing it.)

I finished quilting my asian fabric quilt, and tomorrow I will go and see if there is suitable binding in the local quilt shop. If there isn't, I am going to the neighbouring town on Tuesday, and they have 3 quilting shops so I have options. You have no idea how unusual that is!

I finally bought a new ballet album off itunes. Then I gave myself a class; then I used the music I liked to make a playlist for using next time. I've never used the playlist function before. I will use it again.

I walked the dogs, cooked the dinner, cleaned the kitchen with help from the boys, and then watched a movie with them. I'm off for a shower, and then to sleep.

So far, holidays are busy, hard work, and immensely satisfying.

What I learned: when tidying up the threads from quilting with an easy threading needle, do not put the needle in your mouth if you are chewing gum. Just saying...