So I’m not finished with the house stuff. Not by a long shot. But OH, MERCY is it better around here.
And I’m sure you’re all sitting around thinking, “I HOPE SHE POSTS PICTURES!”
Actually, though, the thought of posting pictures has given me incentive today…because I have felt a little accountable to y’all. I mean, you can’t really post about how overwhelmed you are by your house and then show up the next day and say, “Um, well, I didn’t do a thing.” Hence the trips to Lowe’s and Walmart for Fun New Storage Supplies.
The kitchen and the den are now under control. That makes me very, very happy.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
To get the armoire ready for the new blue hamper toy-thingy, I threw out an entire garbage bag filled with old videotapes. There were two tapes I couldn’t bear to throw away. One is the video of Alex at my 24-week sonogram. Any guesses as to what the second one is? Here’s a clue. It’s NOT a movie.
There’s a fabulous prize for you if you guess correctly. Well, not really. But I can hook you up with a pack of gum if you’re the lucky winner. Everybody needs a goal, right?
Wedding Video?
And way to go! You’ve inspired me to get my little crumb-munchers toys put away neatly!
I am so jealous! You can actually see the floor! Wish mine looked that good and uncluttered. :)
As for the video, would it be footage from Sept. 11? Addie beat me to my first choice, wedding video. :)
Banana pudding: I have used vanilla wafer crumbs, too. I have also used graham crackers in place of the vanilla wafers, and used graham cracker crumbs, too. Both are really good.
Sorry to everyone else who doesn’t read my blog for the off-subject comment, but boomama will know what I am talking about. :)
L-O-V-E the transformation! Thanks for posting the pictures…I think I’ll come back and look at the after shots….when I need some calm, breathing space…..after looking at the messes around my home!!!!
Diane
A sonogram tape of a brother/sister for Alex?
Excellent guesses. But D and I don’t have a video of our wedding (weird, I know – but pictures were plenty for us). And I came thisclose to keeping 9/11 stuff, but I told myself that we could order Alex a DVD off of Amazon when we’re ready for him to see it – especially since that will be years down the road.
So impressive! You go girl. You could now be mistaken? for a clean freak! ;D
Liz, if she already had a sonogram tape and had not informed us of the news, it would not be good.
OK, my guess is one of those silly tapes we made in college of each other having talent shows or some other such nonsense.
[picking self up off floor from laughing at Liz’s comment]
No. No. No tape of baby brother / sister for Alex.
No tape of silly talent show from college. I actually don’t have any of those, but I would’ve saved them if I did.
And I’m beaming with pride that Faith said I could be mistaken for a neat freak.
Going to get in the shower now…curious to see what the rest of y’all guess. :-)
Bee-yoo-ti-ful job! Sister is beaming with pride!
I don’t reckon it’s fair that I guess about the video, huh? But, I would luv to have a pack of sugar free bubble gum. :)
Boo, you are an inspiration! YOU could make your own TV before and after show! That’s IT! It’s a tape of you doing this cleaning project!!!!
Yes, Sister, I think you should refrain from guessing, since I do believe I told you what I couldn’t stand to throw away yesterday or the day before. But I’ll pick you up a pack of gum. :-) And LM, it’s before and after in the bedroom / master bath right now. I’m organizing the linen closet – OH, JOY.
Looking GOOD boomama! I have to ask though….did you throw away the coffee table in photo exhibit A?????
Hope you have better luck with fitted sheets than I do. I would be embarassed for anyone to see what mine look like all wadded up!
No, Bubba, I did not throw away the coffee table. The after picture is of the other side of the room (you can’t tell that it’s a different sofa). A lot of my “after” pictures had a bad glare on them…which is why they are not entirely matched. But I assure you that the coffee table is just out of view on the right hand side of photo exhibit B. Promise. :-)
Well I was a little worried you got caught up in the moment, with all the the tidiness, and just put it on the curb. Glad to hear it’s still around.
Need another clue on the video….I’m working out some theories in my head!!!
Sweeney Sisters from SNL is my first guess.
1996 Basketball Bulldogs Elite Eight defeat of Cincinnati to go to the Final Four is my second guess.
2004 Basketball Bulldogs defeat of Alabama in Tuscaloosa (where you are actually seen on TV) is my third guess.
Series finale of Moonlighting is my fourth guess.
If I haven’t hit it yet, I do have more guesses. Even if I’m not right, you have to admit that I know you pretty well. :)
WE HAVE A WINNER!
Daph, I KNEW you’d get it. I knew it.
Let me just say that it was very, very difficult to part with the Sweeneys, but with the way SNL episodes get re-run these days, I knew I’d see them again.
And I also parted with Moonlighting tapes, which was sad, but they’re out on DVD now if I just have to see them.
I never had the MSU / Bama game from 2004 on VHS because we Tivo’d it, but it’s another EXCELLENT guess.
And you hit the nail on the head with the 1996 Bulldogs basketball team…I have a tape with every single tourney game, from the first round to the Final 4…and I just couldn’t part with it. Mainly because Daryl Wilson hits the floor in that Cincy game…he walks backwards on defense and hits the floor, like he’s saying, “COME ON, BIG BOY…COME ON.” LOVE IT. And you know Dontae shot lights out the whole time. God love him.
What kind of gum do you prefer? :-)
Oh, I just don’t know how to begin my acceptance speech? Of course, I would like to thank the Academy…
I’m sure you haven’t had time to notice that I’ve stayed out of these “cleaning advice” conversations. Having lived with me, I’m sure you know why.
ACTUALLY, I can really identify with the woman on Oprah…not because my house is on the verge of being condemned, but because I really think, like you said, the picture in my mind’s eye of what I want everything to look like in my house is just not attainable. So, I just put it off and put it off. We keep up with the cleaning pretty well (Jimmy is a great help. Like most men, it doesn’t really cross his mind to clean, but when asked, he’s a whiz. In fact, he is THE “vacuumer” of the house, so much so that Gray calls it “Daddy’s back-uumm keener.” But, like you, it’s the organization that kills me. It’s actually my nature to organize; I just can’t find time to do it like I want to.
BTW, Merritt, it’s me who has at least one very funny videotape of us basically cruising around campus and S’ville. I will never part with it. The thing I remember most about the tape (which was being filmed because I had the videotape recorder from my TV Production class for the weekend) is B.Land begging and begging for us to stop and let her get something to eat because she was SOOOOOO hungry. Finally, we went in McDonald’s, where the famished B.Land proceeds to order “a small fry and water, please.” Classic B.Land.
And, BooMama, I am a fan of Carefree Sugar Free Bubble Gum.
Daph, I had forgotten about the small fries and water at McD’s!! Oh my. She probably still eats like that. And that’s why she weighs approximately 98 pounds. I really want to see that videotape sometime in the near future. I do not, however, need to see the tape of MSU at the Final Four. Not that I’m not proud of our dogs. If you’ll recall, we would have been there – and seriously debated going. However, our first born was scheduled to be christened on that Sunday and we thought it a wee bit inappropriate to call the minister and reschedule. Daph, your four guesses at the tape were great. You sure had all of us beat. Only you, Daph…only you.
I wish I could say, “Oh, it was all a SNAP, Daphne – nothing to it!” But it was hard. I just looked at D and said, “You know, I have cleaned for three straight days.” And I have. Cleaning OUT first, then cleaning the surface stuff second. But it was so worth it. Go to http://www.flylady.net – it got me motivated. That and the near nervous breakdown. :-)
By the way, small fries and water for B. Land = classic.
D said the same thing about Daphne’s guesses…something along the lines of “GOOD GRIEF – could she possibly know you ANY better?” To which I replied, “Daphne not only knows everything about me – she remembers it, too.” :-)
Soph, did you know that Daryl Wilson (or maybe it was Bubba Wilson)was a student of mine when I was at MSU? I also had several other basketball and football players: Dontae Jones, Eric Dampier, Eric Moulds.
I was just kidding about the sonogram video, BTW. It reminds me, though, of a comment Tee made when he found out Anne was pregnant again: “Oh, good. I hope it’s twins. The kind that are stuck together.” It still cracks me up! He will be 8 tomorrow. Sweet, sweet boy.
Actually, I had both Daryl and Bubba Wilson.
Eight years old? He’s getting so big!
Hey, I had Eric Moulds, too. I won’t say anything about it because he has lots of money now and I don’t want to get cease and desist letters from his attorneys. :-) But he can catch a football. And poor Dontae – life did not turn out well for him. Daryl Wilson has done well, though, playing pro b’ball overseas.
Hmm. You know more about them than I do. It sounds like Eric was the same kind of student for you that he was for me. In fact, I have no idea what he looks like!