Homemaking with a full time job

Good day, everyone! 

It has again been a rather long time since I’ve posted anything on this poor little blog, so I figured I’d better come up with something to say to everyone!

How has your summer been?  Mine has been going well, although I’m not quite sure how it got to be August already.  It seems like everything is just a blur- one day blends into another, a new cycle of bills arrive in your mailbox, and bam! It’s a new month. 

After 2 months of summer, I am thankful for this last 30 (okay 31) days of sunshine, warm temperatures, and fun times outdoors.  On the other hand, I will warmly welcome cool evenings, katydid sounds filling the night, and all the other little glorious beginnings of autumn that we usually start seeing in the beginning of September. 

My hubby and I planned a little trip in September.  We’ve rented a little camping cottage up around the grand canyon of Pennsylvania.  We’re planning on dragging the boat along with us and…we are going to be going on a dinner train!  The train leaves the station for a 2 hour trip and you are served a meal in a lovely little dining car while you enjoy the scenery.  I am very much looking forward to this little trip! 

Also, in the end of October our bus trip is going to West Virginia.  We have two lovely vacations coming up (well, both are 3 day trips, but still…mini vacations!) and I am very excited and ready to go relax and spend time with my hubby. 

Until then, it’s the same old thing up here in Pennsylvania.  The weather has been hot and humid, which has done little to motivate me into doing some deep cleaning.  The kitchen floor hasn’t been mopped in 2 weeks and I probably haven’t scrubbed out the bathtub in well over a month.  If the house had central air, I might be a bit more motivated, but we only have 2 window units- one in the living room and one in our bedroom.  Truly, the one in the living room is so noisy, that I really dislike having it on if we’re trying to watch television at all.

This weekend, we are planning on going to a little carnival.  I so enjoy these little bursts of fun and entertainment.  It’s not large- in fact it will take about 10 minutes to see everything available, but I don’t mind a bit!  Our local carnivals all support the local volunteer fire department, and you can’t find a much better cause, if you ask me!  All the money generated from the food stands and raffles and such go to providing training and buying equipment.  I’ll gladly spend my money to try and support my community! 

In July, a rodeo came to town and Scott and I decided to go.  I had never been to a rodeo before-- now  I’ve  seen them on TV, but it’s a lot different than being there in person.  The cowboys rode bucking broncos, roped calves, wrestled calves, and rode bulls.  The gals did some roping as well and- my favorite- barrel racing!  It was a night full of fun!   At the end of the rodeo, a band played and the food stands were open till almost midnight.  We got to the rodeo just as it was getting started, so we didn’t have time to eat until it was over at 10:00! 

The rodeo announcer was introducing the cowboys and cowgirls and throwing in a promotion for some of the food stands when we were sitting down.  He was from Kentucky and had a good old-fashioned  southern accent.  Hubby and I had to laugh when he drawled “Folks ya’ll gotta get over to the stand for some homemade haluski and pierogies!”.   lol  Only in Pennsylvania!  For those of you who don’t know, Haluski is a polish dish that consists of buttered noodles, shredded cooked cabbage, with plenty of salt and pepper.  It is very much a regional favorite- but I doubt he’d ever announced the sale of that item anywhere down south!  lol  

I guess I haven’t written much about being a busy homemaker this time around.  I have noticed a lot of cobwebs lately and have been trying to keep on top of them. 

Cooking this time of year is kind of not fun for me.  Again, we have no central air, and when I come home the house is usually around 82 degrees.  Once I turn on the oven, it goes up!  I’ve been using the crockpot some, as well as cooking food on the stove top.  All in all, I’ll be glad when the temperatures cool down and I feel like cooking again!  

Have you been watching the Olympics?  I must admit, I am quite a fan of gymnastics!  I've been tuning in nightly and as a result, I'm pretty sleep deprived.  I need to work out some sort of schedule so I can stay up to watch the Olympics, but still get more than 5 hours of sleep! 

This post is getting insanely long, so I believe that I’ll say goodbye for now.  Take care, my friends out in blog-land.  I pray that your day is happy and filled with all the things that you love.  May God bless you!

Mandy