Why can't I nest like a normal woman?

Why can't I nest like a normal woman?

I have read inspiring stories of women who get this overpowering urge to clean everything in sight before their baby is born. Oh my. I wonder if perhaps these women are already clean & tidy sorts, and they're just getting the energy to do the things they would normally do anyway despite being so huge and tired?

Maybe.

My oh my, I would love for that energetic surge to be put to something useful like scrubbing my dirty kitchen floor or baseboards. But no. I do odd things.

Here is my newest version of "nesting."

First off, while my parents were here, I set my dear old dad to work. (Does delegating even count as nesting? Probably not, but bear with me.)

We forgot to take a true "Before" picture, but you get the basic idea.

Our lovely country-ish kitchen is wood, wood everywhere. Pine (at least, I think it's pine) cabinets, wooden wall panelling, then a matching pine table and chairs. The floor, however, is a greyish-blue tile, but Patrick threatens to replace it one day with hardwood. In my melodramatic way, I pointed out how much time I spend in the kitchen, and how that would make me feel like I was in a wooden box all day. He blinked confusedly and I clarified. "I mean, like being in a coffin all day."

So you can imagine my delight when one day, while running errands with the children, he stumbled across a very large, very nicely discounted window at our local hardware store. You bet your bippy we picked it up.

And since my parents were coming this way, we asked my dad to be in charge of installing it. I assure you, before you think I'm a cruel slave-driver, this is how he expresses love -- by doing things. Generous, back-breaking things.

We plied him with Diet Coke and compliments and boy did he deliver!

Plus the boys got a huge kick out of standing outside watching as he sawed right through the wall of our house. I admittedly felt like it was something out of "The Shining." Very... spooky... to watch.

Then my mom and dad had to depart on Friday morning, with Patrick who was heading to Newfoundland for a few days. Dad was in a rush, peeling weeping grandsons off him and so forth, so the remnants of the vinyl siding (and the funny fake-brick siding that was underneath it!), bits of wood and other reno bric-a-brac were left on the porch.

So I promptly tidied it off. And then I decided we needed some fall plants for the deck. Of course.

Then looking out into our gnarly yard, I decided it was now or never to mow the lawn. That may not sound impressive, but consider the following

1) I have never mowed, ever
2) Our property is about 1/2 acre
3) It hadn't been mowed in... months?

But sure enough Preggo went ahead and mowed nearly the whole thing, until she noticed it was getting high time to put the children to bed and so did just that.

Oh yes, and I also painted a dresser. A funny-looking, pressboard dresser bought at a ridiculously low price on consignment ($6 I think). Did I mention that the look was completed with Sharpie swirls? It has been gracing our bedroom since Noah was a baby (minus the Sharpie, that came when my hands got "full" -- namely, when Isaiah was born and I had a monkey-toddler too.)

I had bought a can of red spray paint a while ago for a project I intend to do for the kids. But the impulse grabbed me and I went ahead and spray-painted the dresser instead. (I'm sure the spray-paint fumes are wonderfully safe for a pregnant woman. Ahem.)

Then I quickly regretted it when I saw the results. It was too red. Waaay too red!

So I packed up the kids, drove down to Home Hardware and bought another can of spray paint in chocolate brown and went back to work. I must say, I LOVE that I didn't do a very thorough job with the brown (not on purpose... oops) because the subtle hints of red add some drama and interest. Patrick, who generally is not a fan of 'decor drama' actually said it looked better, so I consider this one a win.

I should have taken this picture when it was still light out. Mea culpa.

So my weekend sans husband involved carting around vinyl siding, spray-painting, and mowing the lawn. Three things I have never done in my life. It's just such a shame I'm behind now in the things I actually do do. (Oh gigantic Unfolded Laundry Pile, quit mocking me.)

I threw two more loads in while going about my day today. 

They have joined the masses of unfolded clutter. 

It just... keeps... getting... worse.

I managed to clear off some floor space to lay out a mattress (bought at St. Joe's again, naturally) for Noah to 'nap' on. 

How glamorous -- napping in the laundry room!

He mostly just reads Rupert books and hums to himself impatiently until I invite him to come back downstairs.

And the best news of all is, I didn't go into labour while Patrick was away!

{From here on in, 

he's forbidden to leave on work trips 

because I may very well have this baby any day now. Gulp!}

And today, being that it is the feast of St. Therese of Lisieux, a patroness of particular importance to me and Patrick (he proposed to me only six years ago on this day!), I decided it would be a good day to cook a turkey.

Hey, they were on sale this week.

While cooking said turkey, why not also make the fixin's too? So we had turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing made from leftover homemade foccacia, gravy, sweet and sour beets, glazed carrots with pecans and raisins. I also tried my hand at some flower-shaped Rice Krispie treats for dessert (in honour of the Little Flower) as well as the perennial favourite, chocolate chip cookies. (I realize these are rather low-brow desserts... but I wasn't going to throw together a pie, too. I have Thanksgiving in only 12 days to raise the bar!).

Pretend they look like roses and not flowering cacti, please?

Meanwhile my dirty kitchen floor scolds me. And I discovered to my horror today, when a friend popped by, that my driveway is currently showcasing an empty Doritos bag, an empty beer bottle (?) and an empty pizza box. No, I don't run my own personal Frat House. I just neglect cleaning my yard for doing perfectly 'reasonable' things like cooking a turkey dinner on a Tuesday.




Sigh.