So sorry to have let you all down. We’re on Day 14 and still frantically packing. With any luck we’ll wrap up the bulk of it this morning and begin the ugly clean up jobs this afternoon.
Where once there was a gnome village...
Since no one guessed (and how could you??) that it would take us nearly 2 full weeks to pack up our small condo, I decided to do a drawing among all those who submitted a guess two weeks ago.
Congratulations to Krys at 2Vegan Boys!!! Please email me your snail mail address and I’ll pop a treat into the mail to you in the coming weeks!
I really loathe packing. I’ve never been keen on puzzles, and truly excellent packing requires supreme puzzle-solving abilities…skills I am short on.
Thankfully Mr. Knapsack Problem-solver is a brilliant mathematician, and was raised in a family that moved frequently. He can pack more stuff into less space than Space Shuttle engineers.
Meanwhile, I am the Mistress of Planning. It keeps me awake at night, but since I haven’t slept in 2 1/2 years anyway, it’s an excellent use of those hours between 1 and 4am.
Stage 2: Make labels – each box label contains an itemized list of contents, the room the items belong in, and is colour-coded for the length of time it may remain in storage (or, if you’re moving straight into your new home, the length of time it can stay in boxes):
Red – storage up to ten years
Yellow – storage 1 to 5 years
Blue – storage up to 3 months
Green – everything else (safe to sell if necessary)
White – cross country trip and first two months in Seattle
Stage 3: Arrange for storage space (and/or moving truck)
Stage 5: Devise strategy for packing with a toddler
Mornings – I pick an area of the house, sort everything into the respective colour category (while selling, giving away, etc. items that don’t make the cut), and ready packing labels, markers, boxes and other materials while JumbleSpouse entertains the JumbleSon off-sight.
Afternoons – JumbleSpouse works his packing magic (fitting as much as possible into as few boxes as possible, while at the same time keeping the weight of each at a minimum) while I manage JumbleSon.
Evenings – I update spreadsheet and determine what area will be tackled the following day.
Stage 6: Timing.
JumbleSpouse predicts it will take us 3 days to pack because “we don’t have that much stuff.”
I have allotted us 12 days because “have you ever packed with a 2 1/2 year around before?” and because “we want to be absolutely sure about everything we decide to put into a box – both whether or not we should keep it at all, and then what category it should go into.”
GIVEAWAY!
Just to keep you interested in this fascinating topic, how about a little giveaway? I’m not sure yet what it will be – maybe a collection of treats I pick up on our cross-country trip, or something I find in our temporary (home) town, or maybe even something from my own hand.
If you’d like to enter, just tell me how many days you think it will take our family of 3 to pack up a 2 bedroom condo. Those with the right answer will be entered in a drawing to receive a thank you gift for supporting us through this crazy time. We’ll pick a winner (from anywhere in the world) our our last day of packing, so stay tuned!
It was another busy week, so not nearly as much time to pause and drink in all the beauty and wonder that the Web holds.
Fortunately, however, there was so much real-world goodness coming my way that I felt completely full of sweetness and light…
I mentioned a few weeks ago that my neighbor, Molly, was totally smitten by Robin Robertson’s recipes. I thought maybe she’d check out her on-line recipes or borrow one of her cookbooks from the library or something. Imagine my surprise when she turned up at my door with a brand new copy of Vegan Planet…for me!
And, how much more touched was I when she said that a new meal path has been set for her. That she was talking with another condo-dweller (or two) about going vegan together, and sharing meal planning/cooking responsibilities (community kitchen style) after I leave. I’m beside myself with excitement for them!
On Monday, my post box was laden with treats from two of my favorite Etsy sellers – Beneath the Rowan Tree and Mamaroots. What a happy day!
I used Anniversary money from my parents (how sweet of them to send us cash!) to purchase the tights I had drooled over a few weeks ago! I just couldn’t resist them…
I pretty much wanted to buy everything in Lori’s amazing shop! But, decided to use the rest of the money to buy our special dinner wine .
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I entered a giveaway at Mamaroots a while back, and couldn’t believe my luck when I learned that I’d won the Mama & Son capybara set!
When they arrived, I nearly wept with joy to see that sweet Chris had also included a felted play mat – complete with adorable mushrooms for them to nibble. I smooched them (because they’re so freakin’ cute!), then tucked them away with the acorn pendant from Lisa at 5 Orange Potatoes to give to JumbleSon during our move (not that I’m really worried about his transition … every day he tells me multiple times that he’s ready to move to Seattle “right now!” – bless him!)
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Speaking of Seattle, the weather today was just like home! 40-45F, grey, misty and absolutely luscious after the rain. While still in our PJs, we put on our May Day crowns and headed out to help the Flora Children pick flowers and deliver them(selves) to our neighbors’ doorsteps. Of course, Angeliki had already been to our place…carefully planting a mound of sweet violets right next to our steps (and without harming our volunteer strawberries ).
Which reminds me, don’t forget about the Flora Child giveaway – today’s the last day to enter. Just leave a comment on this post and I’ll pick a winner tomorrow!
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But of all that lovely things that came my way, I am most grateful for the kind words and beautiful anniversary wishes coming from those of you who took the time to post this past week. I treasure each and every comment, but especially those sharing my joys. Thank you!!
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So, how about you? Tell me, what brought a smile to your face or joy to your heart this week?
Pressing on with my foodie Work in Progress, here’s
Anniversary Feast Update #2
So, the Mock Salmon Pate is most promising. It’s been a very long time since I’ve tasted good salmon (aka, fresh Copper River King salmon) that I’m not sure how convincing this appetizer will be for JumbleSpouse (who’s a salmon connoisseur). But, the texture is good and it has a “fishy” flair thanks to the Nori (although any salmon eater will tell you that the “real deal” does not taste “fishy”). I’m crossing my fingers.
And, the vodka sauce smelled AMAZING as it simmered (I’m a freak-cook who doesn’t taste while cooking for fear I’ll jinx the dish). So, no worries there.
But, be careful what you ask for…
I was bemoaning the fact that I didn’t have a pasta maker, and that it was making me feel a bit timid about completing the great Vegan Libre ravioli experiment via handmade pasta.
And, I shared the tale with Angeliki – you guessed it! She just happened to have one tucked away in her cabinet. I ask you – is there anything this woman does not have on hand, and is not willing to share or outright give to you?? She’s a Domestic MacGyver, I tell you! So now I have no choice, but to press on…
Wish me luck. I’m terrified.
Thankfully, I’m surrounded by cheerful, encouraging spirits today.
These little Flora Children have been popping up all over my place. Above are the Hyacinth sisters, Violet and Forget Me Not. Lily of the Valley, Daffodil, Rose, Iris and Poppy are just a few others who are getting ready to bloom.
They were inspired by Root Children (ok, they’re direct copies, but sssshhhh…) in Sibylle von Olfers’ book…
and a happy find at the Friends of the Library shop where we found a nearly-new copy of The Story of the Root Children for US$2!!
To thank the Craft Muse for providing all these lovely inspirations, to celebrate Flora and her beautiful gifts, and to share the love with all my blogging friends, I’d like to send this little red Tulip your way.
Just leave a comment here (no matter where in the world you live), and I’ll draw the winner on May 3rd – the final day of the Festival of Flora.
May your days be filled with inspiring W.I.P. and blessed by the sweet sights and smells of Spring!
For those drooling over our anniversary meal, I thought I’d keep you up to date on my preparations…
Last night I made cashew cheese for the ravioli filling. Any chef who makes a vegan cheese without nutritional yeast or tofu makes me a fan.
And WOW! This is powerful, good stuff.
I cut the Vegan Libre recipe in half, but now I wish I hadn’t because the leftover would have been eaten in a flash!
Although the cheese recipe is raw, I sauteed the onions and garlic before adding them (’cause the Jumbles don’t care for raw garlic & onion so much).
Since the cheese turned out so well, I decided to press on and finish off the filling by sauteeing a little more onion and tossing in the spinach.
I did not add another tablespoon of Italian Seasoning. The filling is very strongly flavored without it (thanks to the cheese).
The texture is positively dreamy…like a mousse. I want to eat it with a spoon! But will refrain.
This morning I hope to make the mock salmon pate, and then the vodka sauce this afternoon.
That leaves the pasta for tomorrow. I must admit that I’m getting cold feet about making the ravioli from scratch. If I had a pasta maker, no problem. But, I don’t. And rolling it to just the right thinness is intimidating right now.
May punt and make manicotti using dried pasta.
In other news, couldn’t find a commemorative Washington Merlot. Just one more reason to move back to Seattle immediately!
Amidst a zillion other stresses and worries today, I am crafting like mad for the Festival of Flora which begins today, includes May Day/Beltane and ends May 3rd.
So, let’s have a giveaway!
Tomorrow at Work in Progress (W.I.P.) Wednesday, I’ll announce a crafty giveaway in celebration of Flora and her abundance. Here’s a teaser…
On Monday, a box of amazing treats arrived from HalfPintPixie – chocolates, flower faeries, valentines, bourbon creams (complete with emergency reserve kit) and this!
The Mama in the corner is nursing her baby. But that’s not the most wonderful part. She was hand-made out of mulberry paper by HPP herself! She’s quite the fiber artist.
On Friday, I got to talk with a long lost dear friend. She was so happy, finally living the life she’s dreamed of for so long. My heart was so full of joy for her!
Then, another wonderful package came – from Krys of Two Vegan Boys. I still can’t believe that I won her gorgeous hand-embroidered tea towels! Here they are, complete with the delicious bonus treats she sent: cookies and jerquee (oh, Mr. Stonewall, how do I love thee!)
Can you stand how cute these tea towels are?? Sweet enough to eat, I tell you! Remarkably, I did not eat them as there was no room left after I wolfed down the cajun bacon jerquee and chocolate chip cookie.
And speaking of sweets, JumbleSpouse had a small, thoughtful surprise for me, too. Because I live in a moisture-free zone, my lips are always chapped. The cure? Three vegan lip balms (and soap sample) from Living Botanical.
Check out those lippy flavors: strawberries & cream, dark chocolate and basmati (thankfully it smells more like coconut than cooked rice). Sweet kisses coming his way, for sure!
The lovely day was topped off with a special tea time with my favorite cuties (and Thomas, of course).
So how about you? Did you feel the love this week?
Thanks to everyone for entering the Vegemite giveaway! It brought be great happiness to see all of your names on the little slips of paper in the basket. JumbleSon chose
Congratulations!! And as a special thank you to all of you for playing along (and enduring my decluttering drama) , I give you this charming vegemite commercial. May your cheeks be rosier for your vegemite experience, Shellyfish!
Now, if you’re still with me, let’s get to business…I promise to make it worth your while today {insert wicked grin smilie}.
Last week’s YTD de-thinged total: 430
29 January 2009
Calendar says, “Declutter one entertainment center cubby.”
Pressing on with the pantry today. 3 more shelves to go…
5 old food stuffs – rubbish
3 unopened packages of non-perishables – freecycled
Daily count: 8
30 January 2009
Calendar says, “Declutter one entertainment center cubby.”
Eeee-Gads! This entertainment center thing is going on forever. Thankfully, I have a crazy pantry to match.
5 pantry shelf #4 things – rubbish
I think I’m going to clean out the frig weekly. I have issues with leftovers. Mainly, if they’re in the frig for more than 2 days, they aren’t eaten. I really hat tossing food, but I always hope I’ll get over my leftover phobia, so keep them just in case. But, let’s face it. My neurosis isn’t going away. And, if JumbleSpouse (who, thankfully does not have an issue with leftovers) hasn’t eaten them by Friday, it’s game over. So, to the frig…
1 bunch spring onions – given to Angeliki
5 old yuckies – rubbish
I’ve also managed to break/severely chip several kitchen items this week (yeah! less to move)
3 bowls – rubbish
1 cup – rubbish
Daily count: 15
31 January 2009
Pantry finale
Calendar says, “Declutter one entertainment center cubby.”
Just out of curiosity, how many cubbyholes are in your entertainment center?? Last day in the pantry for me…
5 old food stuffs – rubbish
Daily Count: 5
1 February 2009
Calendar says, “Stop for 5 minutes.”
Done! Aaaah, a day off
2 February 2009
Calendar says, “Give away unused sport equipment.”
We’re not really “sports equipment” users. We do have camping gear, but will not part with it. So, I guess the only thing left is to dig into my closet again and see what kind of running gear I can part with…
2 pairs of pants – Hospice Thrift Store
Daily count: 2
3 February 2009
Calendar says, “Declutter a shelf in the hall closet.”
20 CD’s – posted for sale on Amazon/donating to charity thrift shop
1 CD – given to Molly
2 broken CDs – rubbish
1 broken CD case – rubbish
1 DVD & 1 CD – returned/given to Angeliki
Other random finds:
1 pair of holey socks – rubbish
another rotting mini pumpkin – rubbish
1 glass vase w/minor chips – Hospice Thrift Store
Daily count: 29
4 February 2009
Calendar says, “Declutter a shelf in the hall closet.”
I don’t think I was ruthless enough on the CD shelf yesterday. After all, BonJovi’s Slippery WhenWetis still there. So I’m back at it again today.
8 CD’s – for selling/donating (I had 15 out, but JumbleSpouse wasn’t agreeable to all my picks…I’m not telling if Bon Jovi stayed or left, but I will say that I still feel very betrayed over their country conversion.)
There are a dozen posts on my mind that are waiting to be written, but this is today’s lucky winner. And I mean that.
Last week JumbleSpouse won US$100 through some Internet contest. Today I signed up over on Crunchy Domestic Goddess to win this groovy eco-necklace (and you can bet your whirling appliances I’ll be back for a go at the Vita-Mix). I’ll also be reading the fine print to see if I can snag a $50 Visa gift card from The Motherload in the near future.
All of this got me thinking about freegans. These folks live off of what they can acquire freely (food, clothing, transportation, housing and other necessities) and bring new meaning to the phrase “living off the grid.”
As one who aspires to consume less and move towards self-sufficiency, but realizes she is far too lazy, obsessed with fancy food, and prissy (if the truth be known) to make it reality; I’m fascinated by their commitment to economic celibacy.
I’ve had a small taste of it over the past month as I’ve managed to bring only one non-essential item into my home (a pair of pinking sheers – details to be revealed at a later date). Ok, you’re right, wine and chocolate are not essential. But I’m talking about things other than foods and household products.
Still, I’m a long way from sustainable living beyond capitalism. Which brings me to my question…
Is it possible that with all the giveaways taking place all over the World Wide Web every day, that someone could live off of what they won? What would the wegan manifesto say? Would you join the movement?
Calendar says,“Bring most of your books, papers and magazines into another room.”
Hmmm…well, presumably we’re still in the bedroom. As I mentioned last week, the bedroom is also part- library, so most of those books will be staying put. However, I’ll take this opportunity to go through more shelves and see if we can’t find more to sell/donate…
2 books – Hospice Thrift Store
1 DVD – returned to Shanti
Daily count: 3 (what can I say, it’s really hard to part with books!)
23 January 2009
Calendar says, “Get rid of unmatched socks.”
11 orphans – rubbish
1 rotting mini pumpkin (not in sock drawer, Shanti ) – rubbish
Daily count: 12
24 January 2009
Calendar says, “Take all kids toys out of master bedroom.”
The “master bedroom” is JumbleSon’s room too. So, while there are a few toys/books in there, they can stay as they’re pre-sleep helpers.
Organization is a huge issue in my frig. I do a lot of gluten-free baking for Angeliki. The best way to store the flours and such is in the frig. I don’t have enough air-tight glass containers for everything, so most are still in their plastic package. Since I’ve also been lazy (big
Gluten-free drawer
surprise) about keeping everything tightly closed, there’s a powdery mess over everything. I’ll do better from now on, I promise. For starters, I’ll convert the vegetable crisper into a gluten-free drawer. All the bags will be carefully closed with rubber bands. And, to top it off…I’ll alphabetize the lot. Aaaaah! My inner librarian is feeling sooo much better.
38!! old, gross, out of date food-stuffs – rubbish
3 frig things – to Angeliki
Daily count: 41
The frig is looking fab-o!
Spacious frig after
25 January 2009
Calendar says, “Go on a hike and reflect about your life.”
The high today is supposed to be 32F/0C and it’s snowing. I’ll stay in and do my reflecting, thanks . I break will be nice after yesterday’s madness. I’m still freaked out every time I open the frig. What?? Nothing falling out when I open the door? Freaky!
26 January 2009
Calendar says, “What is the purpose of your living/family room?”
Another lazy day of musing about my space…ahhh, a sloth’s dream. Well, it’s our everything room right now…office, dining, music, media, school, library, craft, cuddle and play room. Such is the life in a small condo. But, we do our best to keep it as open and clutter-minimalized as possible (yes that’s a printer on the dining room table/desk).
Open living room
27 January 2009
Calendar says, “Clear off the top of the entertainment center.”
Scary pantry before
Since we don’t have one, I’m back in the kitchen. This time working on the pantry. Today I tackled the top shelf. Lots of consolidating of half opened/nearly used up things. Plus…
14 items – rubbish/recycling
28 January 2009
Calendar says, “Declutter one entertainment center cubby.”
Today is shelf #2 of the pantry…
Partial pantry after
13 things – rubbish/recycled
4 things – given to Angeliki and Shanti
Daily count: 17
Weekly count: 87
YTD Total # De-Thinged: 430
Now, you may have noticed in my “after” pantry picture that there were a fair number of bright yellow tubes on the top shelf. My sweet MIL has kept us well stocked with vegemite. Perhaps, a little too well stocked. We currently have enough to last us until 2012. So, I’d love to offer you, my faithful readers, the chance to win a taste of Australia!
Just comment below and let me know if you’d like to enter by 9pm next Wednesday (4 February) and I’ll announce the randomly picked winner on De-Thinging Thursday February 5th. I’ll mail one of these cheery tubes of B-vitamin-packed goodness to the lucky winner anywhere in the Universe. So, don’t be shy. Admit you’ve wanted a vegemite sandwich since Men at Work first sang it into your consciousness…
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