Saturday, April 24, 2004

I've got blisters on my fingers

...

Damn screwdriver. Trying to disassemble DD's furniture in prep for the refinishing and upholstering... the drawers have this decorative/functional molding on their fronts, instead of pulls. That stuff is practically welded onto the drawer fronts, there are so many screws. It's ridiculous. At least on the bigger pieces, they're just attached with finish nails so I can just pry them off. On the smaller drawers (there are 4), there are like 8-10 screws holding the molding in place. It's bizarre.

But, I feel like I'm making some progress because I did something with the furniture today, and it has been sitting there waiting all this time.

The first thing I tried was to cut the quarter-round to go on the top (it's complicated to explain, I'll post pictures when it's done) of the little rolling seats... without a miter box, and with a crappy saw. So I went off to Home Depot with DD (the boys didn't want to come! How weird is that?) and got a bunch of stuff. I did get a cheap miter box with a hand saw, but I also got a little electric jig saw I can use, and also one of those Black & Decker Mouse palm-sander things. There are some things that need sanding around here... anyway, throw in some water seal for the swing set and the gate, and a new set of lopping shears, and all of a sudden I'd spent $180. I may return the power tools but then again, I might keep them. I've always wanted a jig saw. You can make cool things with them. Not that I have time to make cool things right now but I will eventually.

So when I got home it was time for church, basically, and off I went. Came home completely exhausted (was up way too late last night -- so late I spaced out at bedtime and forgot to put in my retainer, and now my jaw has been bothering me all day). Puttered around for a while doing little chores like cleaning off the kitchen counter and putting away laundry... those things are time consuming while seeming instantaneous. Eventually made dinner: scallops and spinach for me and DH, pasta for the 2 little ones, leftover pizza for DS1, who doesn't like pasta much at all. It was kind of ridiculous, I was in the kitchen for an hour putting all that together and doing the continuous cleanup thing.

Then in spite of my exhaustion I went upstairs to start disassembling the furniture, because that really does need to get done first. I'll work on the new molding for the tops (it will hold the cushions in place) once I get the old molding off the drawer fronts...

This morning went very well even though we were late for cheer -- DS2 had to use the toilet, and there is just no way to rush a 3-year-old who is still pretty new at using the toilet. So it was, everything ready to go, and then we come to a screeching halt while we wait for him. So I was pretty late, but the others didn't seem to mind. I had the girls practice all their cheers and we reviewed a couple they were unsure of. It was great that I had written them down, so I could refer to my notes. Then we went inside to do the cheers for the teams, and the referee held the games up -- I think they were both at half-time, so our timing was good. Anyway, everyone else cleared off, the girls all lined up in the middle of the two courts, and they did all their cheers. I kept them going, calling out each cheer by name and saying, "Ready?" They all respond, "OK!" and then they do it... they really did great. Of course there are mistakes and confused lefts and rights and what not, but generally they really did great and had fun and got a lot of applause.

It was a bit nerve-wracking to be out there but I had to be brave because how could I expect them to be not-nervous if I was nervous myself? I had to get out there, too... it was OK, a very nice crowd. After we finished (the whole thing was maybe 5 minutes, it really doesn't take that long, and I didn't want to delay the basketball games any longer) all the moms were really appreciative, and one girl's grandmother came over to introduce herself and to thank me. So that was a pretty good thing that I did today. The girls all felt good about themselves, and DD had a really good time. She's finding that when she does practice, she's good at it, and she loves the positive attention she gets. She wore her uniform the entire day! I didn't mind, that thing is indestructible.

One cute thing is that DS2 walked around chanting, "Let's go! Fight! Victory, tonight!" all day... poor baby stubbed his toe this afternoon (we still can't figure out exactly what happened) and was complaining about it off and on all evening. He may have broken it (any time you touch it he whimpers) but I'm not taking him to the Dr unless it gets worse -- it didn't even seem swollen this evening. I've taken DD for x-rays for broken toes twice, and it's just an exercise in futility. Even if it is broken, all they do is tape it to the neighboring toes to immobilize it better while it heals. There is really nothing else you can do. We gave him some Motrin to help with the pain and any swelling (although there was none we could see) and he dropped off to sleep so quickly... he was exhausted.

And DS1 made a shot at his game today! I'm not sure of the details, but DH mentioned that the Ref gave him the ball 3 separate times because he just wasn't in the action of the game much at all... this was the same Ref that halted the games so the girls could cheer. Very nice guy, really attuned to the kids.

All in all, it was a really good day even though I am frustrated about those drawers. I'll figure something out, I'm sure. I may end up having to saw off the molding in pieces, because those screws are impossibly long. What were they thinking? You can tell these are old pieces because they are constructed to withstand anything. Nowadays they use the shortest screws possible to attach whatever it is they are attaching... it's cheaper that way.

Tomorrow morning, coffee with the girls, I should get some feedback on my hair. Maybe, maybe not, I'm not pushy with that crowd, LOL. I have to hang back and not get into the competitive groove. But I do have to remember to tell them that Bernard's in Ocotillo is closed -- this is quite a blow to the chocolate lovers among us, now we'll have to go all the way up to Scottsdale for Bernard's, or settle for something else. Eh, Dove, and especially Dove Dark, usually suit me well enough anyway.

In the afternoon tomorrow DH is taking DS1 to the Diamondbacks' game, so I will do something with DD and DS2, not exactly sure what, yet. The weather was so gorgeous today, I wanted to do something outside like go to the zoo, but DH got involved in some outside chores, and they really needed to get done so we just did our separate things. And if DS2's toe is really bothering him tomorrow, the zoo is not a good idea. But we'll find something to do, I'm sure.

And I have some work to do, too. Part of me is saying, go to bed. Part is saying, flick on the tv and work on those drawers some more. Part of me is saying, do the f'ing work and get it out of the way, it's due end-of-the-day Monday. Why not just clear the deck?

I think I'm too tired, honestly. Shall I be smart for once and just go to bed now like a sane person would? Yeah, I think so.

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