Days four and five, with six in progress

I haven't been home enough to actually post anything, save for my give projects.

For days four and five, I purged.
Not just dug out stuff that I knew I was aiming to get rid of, but actively sought out situtaions that felt like legitimate requests for aid. ( as many years as I have been involved with Freecycle, I can feel out the BS'ers, plus I know IDs to avoid due to personal experiences.. I am all for unbiased giving but I cannot stand liars who them resell what the asked for under the giuse of needing help )
So, not only did I purge things that just aren't being put to use, I went into the hoarded stuff and pained my inner packrat by giving from the stockpile.

Scrapbooking supplies for a bible school and a co-op.

Clothing for a single mom who works but still cannot quite make ends meet.

Bags of too small jeans, some with holes, some with plenty of play clothes life, and some that are in decent shape, for a woman wh is making a quilt for her son, and shipping it to him... in Baghdad. ( in spite of the warm weather there he misses having a quilt and she figures that denim will hold up better than flannel )

Those are the confirmed gives. Others have been contacted. Two declined, saying they'd received what they asked for and to pass the items on to someone else who needed it more ( three cheers for selfless honesty being alive and well in the world! ).

On Friday I ended up putting quite a bit of additional time, effort an dsome added expense into the coaster project, and in the end earned myself a case of sunburn and more unwanted freckles ( thank goodness my husband thinks they're cute ). But it was worth it.. or at least I hope it was. Haven't heard from the principal yet, to garner any feedback.

Yesterday I spent most of the day with a dear friend. We've known each other for almost eighteen years, but distance and changes in our lives don't always permit us to spend time together. It'd been over a decade since we'd done something more meaningful than a trek to pick up take out dinner for the group without spouses and / or children in tow.
We see each other as often as time permits, but we always have our husbands and my kids along for the events.

We made a two hour drive to attend a concert, talking the whole way there and home, and had a wonderful time. The ticket was a birthday gift for me ( purchased back in the Spring, around my birthday ), but the event was a perfect gift for both of us. A much needed reprieve from the stresses of everyday life, and chance to reconnect on a more personal level. Well worth the effort and far more valuable than the financial investemnts made.

Today's give is underway and ongoing today.

I'm still working on the freecycle / Craigslist project, which will hopefully be complete - for now - today. In addition, I am working on a photo project for my childrens' pen pals ( I signed each of them up for one for the summer ), snapping shots of where we live, things that are here, and what we do. A final gift to the recipient wee ones at the end of the summer. I plan to have them in the mail by Wednesday at the very latest if I can help it.

The last piece of today's give is solely for my husband.
Chris can be very self absorbed and shallow when it comes to wanting to obtain possessions, but at the core, he's a decent human being, capable of strange acts of random compassion.

In spite of my protests, he gives money to homeless people, but only after talking to them first. If they won't talk with him, he won't dole.
He takes time from his overworked day to weed and edge for thr 84 year old lady who lives across the road, and with the money she pays him ( she won't let him leave without a few dollars, we've tried and tried to dissuade it and politely decline ), he buys weed killer for the walks and seed n' feed for her lawn.
Most of all, in spite of his outwardly cranky ways, he's an awesome father. ( just don't ever tell him that - he'll deny it vehemently )After working a slew of overtime hours to catch the bills up, going straight from work to help a friend move, and staying home yesterday so that I could go out and play ( though he wasn't feeling well, so it was kind of a two part deal ), he deserves something to show my gratitude.
So I'm spending my day on him. I stayed in bed at his request ( not easy for me - I am a by 8:00 AM riser even when I sleep in ), I made the usual Sunday Ulster Fry, and I'll make dinner and flex my Shiatsu skills at bedtime.
I hope that you've all had a wonderful weekend... I'm about to go resume mine. :-)