Sometimes being unmercifully pessimistic with your expectations of productivity can turn into a wonderful blessing. Take today, for example. We got up, had breakfast and family devotions, then I picked up the can on polyurethane to get back to work, fully expecting to accomplish very little--just like all the other days. Why should today be any different? But, lo and behold, it WAS different! We got sooooo much done!!!

I felt like I started out in slow motion. I polyed the utility cabinet again, then all the stuff that needed done in the bathroom again, then started into those six chairs that I love and hate alternately, depending on whether I'm looking at them or working on them. It was my fourth and final coat on them and I would have expected myself to be quite excited, the thrill of the elusive "end" being in sight. Instead it just seemed like each chair took me twice as long as the last and when I would look up and see how many chairs were still left to do I was always shocked and disheartened. But eventually (around 1:00?) I did finish them. Then I put another coat on the red cabinet doors, the cabinets themselves, and the blue door James built for the toothpaste cabinet.

All that being done I finally stopped and ate a sandwhich at 2:00. (James had fed the kids at noon, but I didn't want to stop when I still had a few things left to do.) The kids went down for quiet time, then got up and we had another day of afternoon schooling. It always feels a little strange, but it works. Joe took FOREVER again today. He totally shuts down when you put a subtraction sheet in front of him. When he looks at all the numbers on the page he just feels totally overwhelmed and hopeless. If you ASK him, "Joe, what's 17 minus 6" he can pop off the answer in just a few seconds. If he sees "17 - 6" on a piece of paper, it might take him several minutes. I finally told him to look at the problem, then close his eyes and repeat the problem out loud to himself--and not to open his eyes until he knows the answer. It cuts his time in half, at least, when he does it that way. Weird kid!

Anyway, I had had all I could take of the house in disarray yet again (or is it "still"--I forget!), so I started cleaning things up. We stopped for a nice, homecooked supper of chicken noodle soup (Campbells--I wish I'd had yours instead, Tammy!) and tuna fish sandwiches. Ah, yes! I almost called you, Tammy! I was so sad. Eating tuna made me think of you and miss being able to get with you and have tuna sandwiches and play Eternal Rummy. ~sigh~ The good ole' days! Ha! At least we have the memories, right?! :-)

After dinner I got busy cleaning up the kitchen. James had started the big job of cleaning out the garage. (Remember what a WRECK it was last time I posted a picture of it?!) James is ready to start building the wall out there (the one that will separate the boys' room from the den area), so we needed to get everything cleaned up out there so we can tear it all up again. ;-) He told Joe he'd pay him for some extra work tonight, so he spent a couple of hours working too. I left my kitchen project and headed out to sort through all of the tools and try to put them in some sort of order on the shelves out there. I thought it might be nice to be able to FIND some of them when we get to work again. It took a lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ong time, but we finally got things whipped into shape and looking good out there again! Here's a picture of James and Joe toward the end of the endeavor.

Meanwhile, in the house, Katie and Sam took it upon themselves to do some cleaning of their own. What great kids!!! Sam vacuumed everything in sight and Katie wiped down all of the appliances and counters and helped put stuff away.






James said since they were all sooooo good and helpful that they could stay up and watch Garfield's Thanksgiving. That made for some pretty happy kid-o's. We put them to bed at about 9:00. James and I kept working and cleaning and moved the chairs over to the TABLE where they BELONG!!! Who would've thought they'd ever actually be there again?! AMAZING!!! Of course, nobody can use them until noon tomorrow (they're supposed to sit for 24 hours after the final coat of poly) but it's still pretty exciting just to see them there AT THE TABLE. ~sigh~ I'm so happy. And they look so great!!! :-)

We got the living room all cleaned up and put back together and I finally finished up in the kitchen, too. Everything was looking so great that I just kept on going! (This is the "binge" mentioned in my title.) I started in on our room and got everything put away and in it's proper place, then vacuumed the floor in there, too. Wa-Hoo!!! Sat and watched the tail-end of an Alfred Hitchcock Presents with James, then went and took a nice, long bath. ~sigh~ Life is so grand!!! Except for the pile of laundry on the floor waiting to be done tomorrow, the house looks TERRIFIC!

Oh, and here's the door James built for the toothpaste cabinet, Mom. I know you've been anxious to see how it turned out. We finally got it hung today. :-)

What a great day!!! If we had PLANNED on getting all of this done, there is no possible way it could have happened. But sometimes it just sneaks up on you and you accomplish loads more than you ever considered doing--and it feels SO GREAT!

That's the good news.

The bad news is that since I was so busy doing all of the other stuff, I failed to put another coat of poly on all of the bathroom stuff again this evening. That means the poly job carries over into tomorrow instead of being done today. Oh well, you can't win 'em all! Besides, it's pretty fast and easy to poly the countertop and such--it's flat and smooth. It was those chairs with all of the bumps and bubbles and curves and slats all over the place that were the killer! But they are DONE now! Forever FINISHED! Wa-Hoo!!! If we were to add up the hours put into those chairs, they must be worth several hundred dollars apiece by now. Ha! Crazy, the things we do. Oh well. Better than being bored, I suppose. And now I have really, really cute chairs to sit on. After noon tomorrow. :-)