Laundry List

Just checking in, nothing exciting to report. I'm in the process of getting a bunch of crap done today. Here is the rundown.

Accomplished since this morning:

1. Put away laundry. It was really piling up. Since I like laundry, I am pretty good about washing, drying, folding, and taking it to the bedroom, but then it just sits in the hamper for too long. Not sure why putting it away is such a problem.
2. Emailed a friend about a movie. We will probably see "Up in the Air".
3. Did 3 years worth of document shredding. Bank statements, credit card applications, etc. It took quite a while and it feels great to have it done. It was backed up because for a while, until just recently, we didn't shred things as they came in. So I am hoping I won't have to do that much shredding at one time ever again.
   
4. Sewed Stanley's belt loop back onto his jeans, and warned him not to use that particular belt loop to hoist them up, because I am an amateur seamstress.
5. Took down the Christmas tree. The holidays are officially over. Spring is coming!!!

Yet to be accomplished:

1. Put all the Christmas stuff in the attic crawl space.
   
2. Clean out the fireplace.
3. Transfer files from my MacBook to our new, clean, shiny, desktop PC. I may have to give my MacBook back in April when my appointment ends, and meanwhile, the PC is much more enjoyable to use, except that none of my files are on it.
4. Send a report to group leader about reputations of all the charities our church supports. I am serving on a board whose purpose is to re-assess the ways the church spends its money and human resources. One charity we support is the Heifer Foundation, which gives cows and other animals to families in impoverished countries so they can raise them for food, breed them and give the offspring to other families. It seems like a great idea. Teach a man to fish, etc. etc. In general, the Heifer Foundation is highly regarded. But I came across articles such as this one and this one that point out that despite our American habits, a meat-based diet is not sustainable, and giving land and grain to livestock animals instead of humans is a wasteful process. Also, a huge percentage of people outside of the U.S. are lactose intolerant, and animals need veterinary resources which are often not available in poor countries. So it's potentially wasteful, and possibly harmful to both people and animals. I'm going to bring up these ideas and see what happens.
5. Fix up the back hallway as a mudroom. Last night Stanley and I purchased coat hooks, shelves, boot trays, and batteries for the studfinder, so there is now nothing stopping me from my goal of an adorable, organized entryway. Pictures to come, if I like how it looks.
6. Set up my new sewing machine. I wonder if I will ever use it. I sure hope sew. <----ha ha what a super excellent pun. I have sew many ideas for projects, and they would go sew much faster and washable if I could use a machine instead of doing it by hand. Here is a partial list.

• case for mini-tripod
• curtains for basement, kitchen, back entryway
• diapers and diaper covers
• table runner/table cloth
  
• removable pillow covers
• hats, mittens using old clothes
• baby clothes
• Christmas stockings
• fabric wall hanger with pockets to hold mail, keys, wallet, etc. Like this one.
• basket liners
• pajamas. So I can finally have long-enough sleeves and pantlegs and stop looking quite so silly in pajamas; I may just alter the ones I have by adding appropriate fabric.

7. Make cookie dough. Originally, this item was "make cookies", but despite the fact that I look forward to making them, it's not happening, so I'm lowering the bar. Lots of bar lowering these days. It's very satisfying. My plans for these cookies are to give them to our neighbors who have been delivering the paper for free (except they haven't done it for the last two days...hmmm....) and to the nurses in labor and delivery. If the cookies get too old before I go into labor, I'll eat them and make more. Yes, I would sacrifice myself and eat nearly stale cookies for the sake of the nurses. I would do that. I'm thinking of making cookies like these for the nurses, with maybe not that exact decoration, but something similar. What do you think? Cute? or borderline creepy?
Actually, I'm thinking, kind of creepy. Maybe I'll use a heart or star cutter with pink frosting. And I'll use my foot cookie cutter for some other, more appropriate event, like if a friend has foot surgery. Or if they catch Big Foot. So glad I've got that cookie cutter, just in case.