Cleaning Out The Junk

My mother crisis is over for the time being. I had a long discussion with my Mom after the dam broke the other day. I feel much better. She didn’t get it, I didn’t expect her to and I seriously doubt any major changes will be taking place but that really isn’t the point. I spoke my mind and now I just feel better, more empowered to create change.

OH, here is some interesting news; I am almost certain that E was not previously married as she said, but with a little help I was able to locate my older brother’s father. He is the one she was supposedly married to. I am still tossing ideas around in my head as to what to do with the information and have not come to any firm conclusions as to whether or not I think he may be my birth father. I have to say though just having his name right now feels like a huge relief.Like the door to my birth father is not totally closed.

Our community garage sale is next Saturday. What a lovely way to spend Mother’s Day weekend! NOT. I have to participate though because either all of this junk goes or we will have to go. There is not enough room for all of us. I have spent the last three weeks going through the kids clothes, closets, toys and yes, even my books.

HOLY CRAP and I mean that literally. I have crap in biblical perportions. A family of six requires me to be MIZZZ. Frugal and I am darn good at it if I do say so myself. OK, that’s a lie. I am actually not good at it at all. I do however have a gift for the whole second hand shopping thing.

For instance, J is off on a Sunday jaunt as we speak buying the kids a wooden swingset that I found in the paper. Have you priced those freaking things? New, they are in the neighborhood of a thousand dollars and you’re lucky if you get the actual swings at that price! I would have to buy the dent and scratch model made out of something called pisswood and still fashion swings from the box it came in and the rope we tied the damn thing to the minivan with!

I saw my neighbor out whittling some swings for their little darlings out of the oak tree in their back yard. No, really!
Neighbors be damned he yelled “Hey you can’t have everything you little weeble wobbles, do you want SHADE or do you want to swing!?! A thousand bucks my frugal ass!”

The swingset he is going to look at is only a couple of years old and they want around 200.00 for it if we take it down. Well, the “we” being subjective of course, I am typing, he is taking the swingset down. It’s a great deal although I would be offering 150 but since J is going we will certainly be paying 200. A bargain Yoda he is not.

The problem with garage sales and me is that I can’t seem to pass up a good deal. If I find a bargain on something say…for my kids… I buy it whether or not my kids actually NEED it. Baaadddd Mia, very bad. Anyway this explains why the idea of actually having a garage sale instead of going to one is daunting. That and the fact that we live in Amish Country and it is a well know fact around here that the local Amish people do their garage sale scouring starting bright and early around 6:30 a.m. and if you miss them you miss half of your customers. In Colorado garage sales were held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday 8-ish if you were lucky to 5-ish. Here you get one crack at it on Saturday and you better have your stuff sold by noon because nobody’s coming after that. I guess after Noon it gets too hot for the horses to be pulling around the buggy-o-bargains? I just can’t say for sure.

The only bright spot about Garage Sale Saturday? After I plunk my sleepwalking husband down in a lawn chair in the garage with a cup of very strong coffee I can take off to see what great stuff my neighbors are selling!

Hey, gimme’ a break It’s Mother’s Day Weekend so I can do what I want and nobody can say a word about it!