Pooped!

Today has been another chock full o' stuff day. This morning, the kids and I were all actually up and ready in time to walk to school, so we brought the dogs and did that, and then after a brief breakfast, I went out to...

- get my TB test for substitute teaching

- stop at PetCo for Delilah's new, larger pinch collar (she's big enough that she totally ignores everything else now, which is NOT going so well)

- go to Kohls for a new 'babysuit' for Josie (OK, bathing suit, but that's what she called it when she was little, and I can't stop thinking of it like that! Also ended up getting pretty plasticware half off for outdoor eating - 2 sets each of four bowls, four glasses, and four plates, at $4 apiece. Yay!

- meander through Michaels to get new picture frames for our growing photo wall. They're having a 40% off sale on frames, plus their flyer had an extra 25% coupon in it.

- run into Walmart (GAK) for cheap workout shorts. Gawd, I hate that place.

- pop into Best Buy for photo paper

PHEW. Then, as soon as I got home, I started tackling the carpet removal in the attic. It smelled SO BAD now that more humid air has arrived, and I found out why - it was old, but also there was lineoleum under the stuff on the landing (I only did the staircase today), so anything that was spilled in it (or messed on it, aka Delilah's potty training escapades) ended up puddling there and not really getting to dry right. It was nasty under there. I hate wall-to-wall carpet. The last time we ripped up carpet, two houses ago, the padding underneath had all dry-rotted, and plus there was a huge colony of dead crickets under it from some past infestation the previous owners must have had. I'm going to rip up the rest of the room tomorrow, probably, because now that I've seen what was under the stuff on the stairs, I can't stand it anymore. Plus, the stuff in the room itself is really, really badly stained from spills and whatnot that wouldn't come out when I had the place professionally done before we moved in. It's Berber, which may hold up well to traffic, but is a bear to clean, and it's CREAM, for chrissakes. Need I say more? What's underneath is darker wood, not like what's in the rest of the house, but still good enough to leave on its own with an area rug or two.

Anyway, the first half of the stairs (there are five steep stairs and then a larger landing, and then five or six more stairs) took about two hours because rather than using one whole piece for the set, the guy used individual pieces for each step. He didn't use carpet strips, either - there were about 20 staples in every step. It was a total pain in the ass!!! I had to get the kids as soon as I had that part done and cleaned up, and then I did the rest of the stairs as soon as I got home. Those were all one piece, so it went a lot faster because there were fewer staples and the ones that were there were in better shape, for some reason. Seriously, people, if there was a staple shortage about ten years back, it was totally all this guy's fault. My hands are a sore mess.

My plan for the floor up there is to whitewash it, with floor paint. I think that'll be pretty, but casual, and will cover up any scratches left by God-knows how many nails that are probably in place up there, in a shabby-chic kinda way.

After that was all done, it was time to vacuum the bedroom and main levels of the house, and tidy up the kitchen so we can make dinner in a few.

I'm POOPED.

But, I'm thinking about going to yoga tonight. I haven't gone yet at this new gym, and I'm looking forward to trying it out. The same woman that works there did a couple of sessions at our church before Easter, and she's good. But, I may wait until next week, 'cause I'm wiped, y'all.