Since I don't have any sewing projects to share, but I have a couple free hours in the morning while my son naps and I don't really have anything to do since I need to be quiet while he sleeps, I thought I'd share a few of the things that have helped me stay sane while on the road and staying in our hotel room.
1. Diet Coke.
2. Trader Joe's snacks. Cinnamon Schoolbook Cookies, cheese crackers, PB&J bars, and applesauce pouches. I have been packing a lunch for my kids and husband everyday from our hotel room which has been . . . interesting. Dishes in the bathroom sink and all of our food stuffed into a tiny fridge. Having handy snacks has been crucial.
3. Headphones. For everyone. We all want to watch our own thing, and no one wants to listen to anyone else's movies or music. The kids use these Lil Gadgets wireless Bluetooth headphones and they have been so great. They connect to the kids devices via Bluetooth so there aren't any tangled wires.
4. Books, books, books. We have tried to have plenty of books in the house for our kids, so I knew I wanted to get some books from their wish lists for the trips. Graphic novels have really helped our oldest catch the reading bug. Here are a few of the books we picked up:
Cleopatra in SpaceZita the Spacegirl
Mighty Jack
Rapunzel's Revenge
5. New restaurants in new places. Most of the time when we travel we are in a rush and stop at McDonalds and Taco Bell, but since we were taking in time we took advantage of Yelp and had delicious cinnamon rolls on the central California coast, great Greek food in Northern California, and a wonderful little restaurant not too far out of Salem that had an indoor playground for the kids.
6. Online fabric shopping. You knew this was coming. I can't order anything right now, but that hasn't stopped me from "window" shopping.
7. Puzzles and game books. This one was a big hit.
8. Planning our new house. We can't move in yet, but that doesn't mean I'm not already choosing new paint colors. The whole place is painted various shades of yellow right now. Yellow is great and everything, but it's not what I want on all of my walls. So far I am thinking of Hazel and Anonymous for the kids rooms, but I am very open to suggestions if you have a favorite paint color!
That has kept me kind of busy. We sold most of our furniture before we moved so we need a new bed, new dressers for everyone, a new dining table, and various other small things. I can't wait to get into the house so that we can get settled and hopefully I can get back to sewing soon!
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Planning your new house must be really exciting ♥
ReplyDeleteIf you are looking for some neutral colors, we just remodeled both of our upstairs bathrooms and were looking for beige grey mixes. We ended up with SW Mega Greige and Anew Gray. I think they both could be qualified as taupe. I like them both and find they have been good with both grey and beige and are a great foil for a shot of color.
ReplyDeleteOh, man, that sounds rough! I'm sure the novelty of hotel life has long since worn off! :). I have the worst method of picking paint colors: I am a total sucker for the name, so I end up with paint colors like "frisky kitten" and "pumpkin pie".
ReplyDeleteOne of the great features of the SW numbering system is that it gives you details about the color. One of my favorites is the LRV or Light Reflective Value. Its crazy how a darker color can sometimes reflect more light than a lighter color. I like a lot of light to bounce around and avoid colors that suck it up. With their LRV system you do not have to guess. Have fun setting up your new home!
ReplyDeleteOh my, I am sure you are sick and tired of hotel living. It is fun for a while, but ugh.
ReplyDeleteI am excited to see pictures of your next new place! It will be fun to get settled again. I would be getting a bit cranky after a while with not sewing, fabric shopping sounds like an excellent diversion
I hope you get to some normalcy soon. Moving can be tough especially with children. It sounds like you are going to start anew with new furnishings, paint colors, house. Blessings to you.
ReplyDeleteBrod Dugan had this paint color called City Lights that I just loved. Had my living room, dining room and hallways painted that color. Sherwin Williams has a similar color called City Loft. I like my rooms to be bright but I can also have a Robin's Egg blue colored room and be happy. As long as there is enough light coming into the room.
Wishing you a speedy sale and final move.
Oh my, I know exactly where you are coming from. We just finally moved into our new house. I think unpacking takes longer than packing! There are so many important things to do like getting utilities, mail box, etc. and it is so confusing. All this stuff just sucks up our sewing time. Like you, I will be so glad to get back into my routine of sewing and quilting. We also stayed in a motel in between moves. I wish you the best and hope to hear about your new house soon.
ReplyDeleteCheck out Konditorei for delish desserts (and good food as well)
ReplyDeletehttp://gerryfrankskonditorei.com/ It's one of my favorite places in all of Oregon, let alone Salem!
I moved from California to Washington January of 2015 So almost two years ago! My kids are grown, and I moved up here with one of them, still it was hard! I think this is why I move only every 20 years or so!
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to hearing more of your adventures and seeing your new place! Welcome to Oregon!
I love the Anonymous paint color. I clicked on 'similar colors' and the next palette - Sculptor Clay and Bonsai Pot really speak to me, too. I look forward to seeing what you do in your new home. I retired two years ago, sold my condo, and downsized quite a lot when I moved. One thing I've known for a long time and rediscovered with this last move is that the process of redecorating, etc. is every bit as much fun as the end result. So savor it.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your sanity saving list. It makes a lot of sense. I'm sure doing this with kids can be quite challenging. Good luck on that closing date!!
Your son needs to catch The Tintin bug. We bought many and they made the rounds thru the neighborhood.
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ReplyDeleteThanx for sharing such useful post keep it up
ReplyDeleteAriana