The Bathroom Floor...

To review -- the upstairs bathroom needed a new floor...

The original peel-n-stick vinyl tiles I laid in 1981 were butt-ugly to begin with.

Five or six years ago, I had to replace four of them -- and, OF COURSE could not find a match -- so I just added some other random butt-ugly tiles...

This bathroom is seldom used, and maybe that's why I've been able to be SO CREATIVE in this room. Remember the shower curtain I sewed and/painted a while back? And, of course, the paint job on the walls is WILD...(there will be an unveiling one day soon)...

So, I wanted something comparable for the floor...

But, I didn't want to spend a lot of money. And I wasn't in the mood for any kind of real renovation project (with workers, or a crew, and a big mess...)

So, I did what I've been doing for the last three months...I WENT ON AMAZON to find some floor tiles.

Except there was nothing DIY fun that would go in this room.

THEN IT HIT ME -- I could turn this into an art project for me and the kids.

So, I purchased something called "floor pops". They are only 3mm thick (which is perfect) -- and they are meant to be laid right on top of an existing vinyl tile floor.

Then, we tested some permanent markers -- (the markers cost more than the tile) -- and went to work.

OF COURSE -- there would be WORDS...

Lilly spent HOURS on this pointillist work of art

I spent about 10 minutes on this one...(getting TIRED OF IT NOW...)

It should say Your Vibe ATTRACTS your Tribe...(close, tho, AZ)...

Our designs were NOT supposed to be matchy, matchy...

OH MY GOD...this project has been SO MUCH FUN. Honestly. It was perfect. I'd be watching television at night, and I'd just make two or three random new tiles. Then, when I was in the mood, I'd go upstairs and cut a few

Socially Distanced Birthday Party

My cousin Jackie came to town for a visit. As it happens, it was during her BIRTHDAY WEEK. So there was a lot of cupcake-eating happening...

On her ACTUAL BIRTHDAY, we went to lunch at Applebee's (where we got to SIT INSIDE THE RESTAURANT).  Afterwards, I gave her a special cousins-only-ragged-edge-t-shirt quilt.

Every single t-shirt square had some kind of "Jackie" significance.

The black square says, "Common Sense Tends to be Uncommon. Let's not have that problem." Soooo Jackie...

The zebra square is a recycle from a hassock that used to live on my porch.  She's been to MANY PORCH PARTIES over the years...

There were MANY New York City squares.  We've loved every trip we ever took to that fabulous city...last year, with Amy and Nicole, was one of the BEST TIMES of my life...

We asked a random woman in the parking lot to take our picture.

Then -- we went on to her ACTUAL BIRTHDAY PARTY -- at Sue's house.

Long-time friends...Sue, me, Jackie and Barb. Class of 1967....wow. 

Sue's house sits on 5 acres of BEAUTIFUL PARK property...

So, except for the photo op -- there was plenty of space for a small, socially-distanced birthday party...

Anyway -- Jackie WOULD have come back to Iowa in March, for MY birthday party. Which was, of course, cancelled due to the pandemic. We certainly had no idea in March how this was all going to play out.  But I don't think we had any idea that even in JUNE -- it wouldn't feel safe to have a birthday party.  Unless it was small.  And you were able to be outside...socially distanced...

At this point, I am grateful.  In so many ways, our lives have become smaller...

Lilly's Triffle

Lilly LOVES TO BAKE.  She picked out a red velvet cake mix...and she put it all together by herself.

But it was in the oven too long...and it was a little dry around the edges.

So, I suggested she cut it up and we make a Triffle instead.

She looked up Triffle:

Trifle (TRI-fuhl) – The word “trifle” comes from the old French term “trufle,” and literally means something whimsical or of little consequence. A proper English trifle is made with real egg custard poured over sponge cake soaked in fruit and sherry and topped with whipped cream.

She started by cutting up the cake -- and slicing away the dry, over-baked bits...

She sliced some fresh strawberries...added a little sugar...

Then, she made a box of instant vanilla pudding -- adding some strawberry kool-aid to give it a pink color...

Then, in a big glass bowl, she began to layer the elements.

It looked great...

She finished it off with some real whipped cream.

The finished design was all her own...

GOT JUNK QUESTIONS

A few people were appalled that I'd encourage my grandkids to play on a forbidden playground...sorry to disappoint.  But these are trying times, and I feel  like everybody's gotta make their own choices.

Three months ago, when this thing started, I made the decision that I WOULD CONTINUE to see Lilly and Warren on a regular basis....even though grandparents all over the country were being told our grandchildren were radioactive.  Many families have had absolutely no physical contact during all this time...

That doesn't mean I was right and you were wrong.  It just means we made different choices.  And I'M FINE WITH THAT. 

I had a few questions about how the GOT JUNK guys do their pricing...

Here it is.  You sign up online...and when they actually COME TO YOUR HOUSE, they assess your "junk" and give you a price.  Which is a solid number.  There are no add-ons, or extra fees, or surprises at the end of the day (there's a $5 surcharge for old television sets).

When I signed up, I indicated on the form that I thought I'd have "half a load".  Which, by the time Calvin and John joined the party -- turned out to be a gross under-estimate...lol...

But, if it had just been my basement, Adam said it would have been half a load.  That would've cost $300.  And he would NOT BE ALLOWED TO GO UP ON THOSE CHARGES.  Once we agreed on a price, he'd have to quit at half a load.

I couldn't risk that.  Him quitting BEFORE THE JUNK WAS GONE.  

So, we agreed on the price of a full truck.  $580.  The thing is -- if we hadn't gotten there -- if the truck had only been 3/4 full, he would have backed OFF that price.

Which made perfect sense to me.  And seemed more than fair...

GO FOR IT.  1 800 GOT JUNK

The GRAND REOPENING...

Iowa parks closed on March 15.  With so many other things also closed -- theaters, schools, YMCA, swimming pools -- NOT being able to play in an outdoor park added insult to injury.

Oh, yeah -- every town or school playground had THESE signs posted.

Thankfully, after three months -- things were starting to open up....FINALLY -- I'm able to go into a restaurant....(three times in the first week)...but the playgrounds were still shut down.

One Saturday, the kids and I picked up a Kwik-Star lunch and headed to a park in DeWitt.

It was SUCH a beautiful spring day!! The kids were thrilled to get outside...in the SUNSHINE....it wasn't snowing or raining...it wasn't freezing cold or blistering hot....the weather was PERFECT.

After we ate lunch, I got out my bag-o-games...

Lilly won the Qwirkle game (AGAIN)...

But the playground equipment was beckoning..I mean -- IT WAS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL DAY. And they haven't been able to play on any equipment for MONTHS...

But, still -- there were ALL THOSE SIGNS....

Hey. At this point -- I figured the safest place in the world was playground equipment that's been cordoned off for three months.

So I told the kids to GO FOR IT...

Hey -- FIRST TIME ON A SWING SINCE LAST FALL...

See,here's the thing. In the last three months, we have learned more about the virus....especially about HOW YOU GET IT.

I read an article recently that said these new habits we have all developed will, (knock on wood) save us from a second wave.

Because NOW WE understand the value of social distancing...and, most importantly, we are WASHING OUR HANDS, and using HAND SANITIZER...which I now carry at all times. Everybody I know carries hand sanitizer now. THAT'S OUR NEW NOREMAL.

I have it in my purse and in my car... 

And it is, very possibly, our best NEW habit.

Frankensewing T-shirts into Shorts.

Over the past coupla weeks, I've made about 12 pairs of short for Lilly and Warren.

Tweeking the patterns to fit them properly took a few attempts...some turned out better than others...

Basically, three things came together for this to happen:

First -- I heard it was going to be hard to buy kids' summer clothes -- as the January shipments from China never happened.

Second -- I was clearing the basement -- trying to whittle away on my gigantic t-shirt mountain.

Third -- Sewing is what I do when I'm feeling stressed...so there has been A LOT OF SEWING...

Once I was happy with the fit -- I pinned Lilly and Warren's patterns to the wall SO I COULD FIND THEM WHEN I NEEDED THEM.

Each pair of shorts requires TWO t-shirts.

I made a casing for the elastic.

After I inserted the elastic, I made sure more of the gathers were happening in the BACK, rather than the front...then, I topstitched the top of the waistband (to keep the elastic in place).

I put a patch pocket on the left side for Lilly...and on the right side for Warren...

It's hard to find two t-shirts that are the same...so I decided to embrace the difference.

I didn't bother to hem them...as a matter of fact, I didn't even bother to make sure the front was the same length as the back.