Busy Weekend!

This weekend was incredibly busy! I needed a rest, but no rest was in sight. Luckily, I got a different kind of rest--the kind that comes from accomplishing many odd tasks. Individually, they were not of life-or-death importance, but together, they were a big nuisance because they weren't finished! It was much akin to trying to get to the last box in a series of boxes, and every time you need to access that box, you have to move all the rest. The obvious solution is to make a pathway or restack the boxes for easier access. In addition to all my work on setting up our financial box and our house information box (full of info on companies and products we will likely use within the year), I rented a Uhaul for yesterday's retrieval of the beautiful china cabinet. Before we went to pick it up, though, I suggested to my husband that we head over to Burlington's Pizzeria Uno for a nice post-church lunch. I mentioned on the way that I thought Lay-Z-Boy furniture gallery, usually far out of our price range, was having a sale a few weeks ago, so perhaps we might be able to stop and have a look to see if they were selling any floor models within our financial reach. If we could pick it up from the store, we'd save even more money, as we already had the Uhaul for the entire day anyway. As you probably do not know, we've been sitting on a loveseat that smells like cigarettes and cat pee, with the sides of it shredded so the stuffing is coming out and an old, vinyl recliner from the 60s with duct tape all over it to keep the stuffing in. Sounds cozy, right? In reality, it made the room feel trashy and me trashy in it. I've been pricing sofa sets for months. When we arrived in Burlington, a man with a sign proclaimed the emminent closing of this location, and all items must go! 50% off! So, after our mini-pizzas, we toddled on over there and found a great deal on a sofa and loveseat and coffeetable that suit us. The sofa is a beige with a floral tapestry in crimson, evergreen, and royal blue, and it has gold detail. It's a very warm pattern, and the sheen of the tapestry fabric is such that the couch somewhat glows in the light. It also happens to match the crimson palladio throw I already owned as well as the gold chenille throw. The crimson looks wonderful next to the fireplace, and I plan to paint the walls a light blue to bring out the blue in the couch. The coffee table has drawers and plenty of place for storage. It's great for magazines, my little financial calendar and pencil pack, and board games. I think when we paint the walls and trim, our place will look even better. We do plan to get hardwood rather than carpet, but that's a slightly later project. My husband thinks I should start calling to get estimates, because in a month, neither of us will be home during the day during the week to get estimates done. He's right. I'll put that on my list.

We also got the china cabinet and unpacked our china into it. It looks so lovely! Something about having a china cabinet and a hope chest makes this place feel like a Home, not just a place to park our stuff. I get to walk by the china cabinet every day and think of our wedding and all the people who love us as represented by the beautiful china they gave us. One of my neighbors back in Kansas made me a hand-knit lace doily and it is absolutely incredible. I love it love it love it! I have it displayed under a crystal bowl. I get the warm fuzzies whenever I look at the cabinet. How blessed we are to be so loved!

I was telling my husband last night that I feel better after this little spree. Previously, I felt like I was still living the crappy student life with free, stinky furniture and boxes everywhere, except for the added stress of being somewhat isolated and lonely. The isolation I liked because living in the city sucked, but the loneliness of his being gone all day and all evening was wearing on me. I suppose I felt like I was getting the worst of both worlds--crappy student standard of living, lonely housewife feeling at home. After spending awhile unpacking with him (and having furniture to unpack INTO), I now feel like a Homeowner. I also have been getting more involved in church (now that we live nearby), and took part in a dramatic liturgical reading yesterday and went to my committee meeting last week. I think I am REALLY going to enjoy being on that committee; it's right up my alley and I heartily enjoy the other members of it. I truly enjoy the church we go to now. There is a lot of room for improvement, but by and large it is already an excellent fit. Joining that church has made a huge difference in my happiness level. My husband originally wanted to live south or west of town, but I pointed out that we would not be able to be involved in church as much--the ONE thing I like about Boston--and he agreed that on this particular issue, my happiness was a factor in addition to the commute. Now that we have settled into North Reading, we love it. It's exactly like Mayberry from the Andy Griffiths show--people even congregate outside the Dairy Queen on Sunday afternoons! It's a great fit for us, and I'm so glad we moved here.

We also got a fancy welcome basket from all the local small business owners. It has free stuff, coupons, information, and even a manicure kit! It was all done up in cellophane and had a bow and I felt all giddy as I unpacked it. I'm glad I went through it carefully because there are a lot of services I'm going to need, and many of the local businesses that perform said services gave us little coupons. As I have mentioned before, my husband is absolutely swamped, and he has been nearly ready to flip becaues of his paradox: he can't get good writing done on his thesis until he can clear his mind, but he when he sits down to clear his mind, it's time to get some sleep. He's simply not HOME enough. Well, there are some local day spas, and they have New Homeowner Specials, and I think I am going to call them and book my husband a massage. He has never had one and has always wanted one. I think it would help him clear his mind and relax. He might be like Lois on Malcolm in the Middle, though--when she gets a massage for the first time, she starts crying from all the pent up stress. Ha ha! Also in Husband News, his great grandmother and great aunt died last week. His family is really stressed out. I realize at this particular time that my troubles (feeling lonely and constantly doing housework) are far less than what others in my life are going through, so I am trying just to suck it up.

I've just about finished my coffee, so I had better shower, do dishes, and get into Cambridge for my meeting.