Life Lately
Hi friends. What are you up to? Occasionally I like to check in and just catch up and it’s been a while since I’ve done that. Here’s a little of what’s been going on with us lately.
Tom surprised me with this Solo stove for Christmas and we used it for the first time last week. It was so fun. We have a gas firepit but there’s something about a real fire for atmosphere and the heat it puts off. It did smoke a little (that might have been the wood we used) but there was still so much less smoke than a regular bonfire, and our clothes didn’t smell like smoke afterward. I’m so glad to have it.
Our hardwood floors are (finally) done! We had carpeting taken out and hardwoods put in our bedroom, closet, hallway, and my office done on the second floor. I posted a short video on IG if you’d like to see. We also had our stairs redone so I’ve been looking for carpet to have installed as a runner. I really don’t like making decisions about big things so that part’s taking me a while.
As we put the upstairs back together after the floor installation we’re both taking this opportunity to go through things and get rid of a bunch of stuff. We had to completely empty out the rooms (everything got packed into the two bedrooms that still have carpet) and we’re both feeling very picky about what goes back in. We considered having our small walk-in closet professionally organized but instead, we’re trying to move less back in and buy a few organizing solutions as we go. We’re also going to paint the inside of the closet white to brighten everything up.
Tom and I are watching Shrinking on Apple TV. Have you seen it? It stars Jason Segel and Harrison Ford as psychologists (hence the title) and it has a Ted Lasso kind of feel, funny but also heartwarming. Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent from Lasso) is one of the creators so that makes sense. We really like it.
We have a little living area in the basement of our lake condo that never gets used, so I’m turning it into an additional sleeping space. We got rid of a dark brown couch and chair that came with the condo and replaced it with this full-size daybed with a twin-size trundle. I bought an indoor/outdoor rug for the space and also this little tray table so whoever is sleeping there can pull it up for their phone and a bottle of water.
This week I went out and took stock of the Little Free Library that’s in our front yard. I took out books that had been there a while, added some new titles, and straightened everything up. The LFL folks call this being a good steward of your library, which is an idea I love. I wasn’t sure how much the library would get used on our sleepy suburban cul-de-sac, but I’m happy to say that it does. Once I even caught sight of a middle schooler getting off the bus after school and heading to the library, which thrilled me.
I hope all is well in your world. Thanks so much for being a reader of the blog. I appreciate you being here.
P.S. New things to watch and read and what I’m loving.